FMA Relationships
by Venjess
Summary: We didn't so much as get a single canon kiss in FMA or FMAB, so here I'm going to write little one-shots for romantic relationships, for friendships, trios and family... pretty much any shipping you ship, and you can request it here.
1. EdWin Romance: Not A Bad Day After All

**Okay, so this is like my Kingdom Hearts romantic one-shot thing... basically, I'll just write up one-shots for whatever shippings I ship, but if there is a particular shipping ****_you_**** ship, then I'll do a one-shot for that too.**

**I'll do romantic shippings, bromances, trios (romantic or just friends) and since family is a bit of a big thing in FMA I'll do family one-shots too (for example, if I was doing something I liked, I might do a one-shot about the Elric family... doing... something together... like... getting ready for Christmas, stuff like that).**

**EdWin is the first one here, it is the cutest, most adorably awkward romance ever, I just love it.**

**I don't own Kingdom Hearts.**

**Enjoy~**

* * *

**EdWin Romance:**

"That's the third time in one day!" Edward Elric- otherwise known as the famous Fullmetal Alchemist for the many amazing feats he had accomplished- stormed into his room slamming the door behind him. "I am not short! Dammit!"

He was also well-known for his small stature as well as his temper when the former was brought up.

"Is everything okay, Brother?" Ed turned to see a large, metal armour seated on one of the beds, reading an alchemy book. He growled, "three times, Al, _three_ times in _one_ day, I've been called short. I'm not short! Right, Al?" "U-um…" Ed watched, irritation rapidly growing as his younger brother flailed around, trying to think up a way to answer honestly without annoying Ed further, "it's not the height that counts, Brother."

Ed's eye twitched, he turned and stormed out of the room once more, vaguely hearing Al call out behind him, "Winry arrived this morning to look at your automail, but you were out! Since you were the one who called her and asked her to come all the way to Central for you, you'd better go see her soon! She's staying with the Hughes'!" Ed paused for a moment, turning back to look at the shut door, before continuing on down the corridor.

Once outside, he pulled up his right sleeve and inspected the automail contemplatively. It was still moving, but it had gotten stiff for some reason. Ed sighed, a depressed cloud descending on him as he slumped against the wall, "Winry's gonna kill me for making her wait. At least it's in one piece still; she can't get angry at me for completely destroying it. Not like last time." He winced and a hand came up to rub the top of his head- where Winry had last hit him with her wrench- reminiscently.

He decided the best thing to do would be to walk to Hughes' place, he didn't want to turn up in an already bad mood, he'd just end up fighting with Winry. Normally he wouldn't worry about a fight, but he's never won in an argument against that girl. Not once. It didn't help that whenever Winry got too frustrated with him, he would find himself getting beaten up with her wrench, _'why did I give it to her again?'_ he wondered briefly, before shaking the thought away. _'Not like I can take it back anyway.'_

He started walking.

Three minutes later, it started raining.

He passed a pub, and someone vaguely familiar stepped out of it. Ed paused for a moment in his silent fuming, curiously looking once more to see who it was. When he realised, his mood plummeted even further. It hit rock bottom when that same person noticed him and walked over, holding an umbrella over his head.

"And what are you doing out in the rain, Fullmetal?"

Ed's eye twitched, "hello, Colonel," he growled, teeth clenched, "I was just on my way to the Hughes' house, my mechanic is there at the moment."

The taller raven- Colonel Roy Mustang, the well-known Flame alchemist and war hero- chuckled, "oh, so you broke your arm _again_, Fullmetal?" he teased. Ed frowned, _'man, this guy really gets on my nerves,_' he slid up his sleeve, showing him his arm, "see? Still in one piece, it's just a little stiff, not really something that's my fault."

"Then why are you in such a bad mood, if it isn't that bad, you don't have to worry about your mechanic's wrath, I don't imagine she'll blame you too much for this." Ed crossed his arms before muttering, reluctantly, "I got called short. Three times." As expected, Roy chuckled again, "now, now, there's no need to get so upset over something that can't be helped." Ed narrowed his eyes suspiciously, no teasing? "They call you what you are… Shrimp."

Ed exploded, "WHO ARE YOU TO CALL ME A PINT-SIZED MIDGET SO SMALL YOU'D NEED A MICROSCOPE TO SEE HIM!" he yelled while throwing haphazard blows at the man who blocked them easily.

Colonel Mustang walked off, waving back to a furious Edward, "well at least I'm not useless in the rain!" Ed called, he grinned triumphantly as he saw Roy twitch and turn back around angrily. "Colonel Mustang!" Both alchemists turned to see Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye running over with an umbrella, "The Fuhrer has requested your presence, Sir." Roy nodded, all humour gone from his voice as he replied, "of course, Lieutenant, I'll be there right away." And the two walked off, leaving a drenched Ed behind.

* * *

"He could have at least offered me his umbrella, he was going back with the Lieutenant anyway, jerk." Ed muttered to himself five minutes later. If he hadn't been wet before, he was definitely _drenched_ now, _'why did I think walking to the Hughes' place would make me feel better again?_' he asked himself silently.

Finally, he found himself standing in front of the door to Hughes' home, after knocking on the door, he waited, a puddle forming at his feet, he sneezed, wiping his nose miserably. When the door opened he forced a smile onto his face, "oh! Ed, what on earth happened to you?" Ed rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "it's nice to see you too, Gracia. It was raining outside and I didn't bring an umbrella."

Gracia- Hughes' wife- smiled, "well, I'm guessing you're here to see Winry, but before you do, I'd better find you something to dry yourself off with. Come on in." She stepped back, allowing Ed through the door.

* * *

Ed rubbed his hair dry with the towel Gracia had handed him, quickly getting more frustrated as his automail arm continually hitched and jerked. He sneezed again, "seems like you might be catching a cold now, Ed, what on earth where you doing out there without an umbrella?"

Ed wrapped the towel around his shoulder, turning to Gracia he ran his hands through his hair, frowning as it fell sloppily to dangle in his face, "I didn't want to make Winry wait any longer since she went to all the trouble of coming to Central for me. I figured I would walk over here, and it wasn't raining when I left, so I didn't bring an umbrella." He winced as his arm creaked again, "I'm really regretting that choice now, it was already really stiff enough, now… it just…" he trailed off as he heard the door open behind him.

Turning he saw his childhood friend and mechanic- Winry- walking in, holding Elicia in her arms. Winry frowned when she saw Ed, "so what did you do to my lovely automail this time?" "Hey!" Ed spun around completely to face her, "I haven't done anything, it's the automail!" he defended.

The next thing he knew he was lying on the ground with a new lump on his head, Winry towering over him menacingly, with a wrench in hand.

"Don't you _dare_ insult my automail."

* * *

Ed lay down on the couch, still focused on silently fuming, not even noticing as Winry began to check the different parts in his automail. "Ah, here's the problem, the main gear in charge of translating the nerve signals from your brain has started rusting. You haven't been oiling your arm enough so it rusted and got stiff like this." She sighed, as she finished replacing the gear, looking down at Ed, rolling her eyes irritably, "honestly Ed, this is simple stuff, you shouldn't be having trouble with it now."

Ed grumbled intelligibly about 'being busy' and 'not having time for that sort of thing at the moment', it was cut off as Winry re-connected the nerves, Ed bit the arm rest of the couch '_ow_' he thought to himself miserably before snapping at the blonde, "I told you to warn me before you do that, Winry!" Winry sighed, rolling her eyes at Ed's outburst she then asked, "so why were you in such a bad mood when you came in, I'm guessing it wasn't just because of the rain." Ed glanced at her, briefly wondering at her ability to know how he was feeling without being told, _'I guess it' because we've known each other so long_´ he mused to himself before replying, "the rain made my mood worse, but… yeah, it was from something else." He could tell the blonde was waiting for him to continue, so he sighed, frowning as the irritation came back again, "I got called short. Three times. Then _Al_ didn't deny it, and on the way here, I ran into _Mustang_ and he called me Shrimp. Man, that man pisses me off."

Winry stared at him for a moment before rolling her eyes, "of course it would be about that. Listen Ed, you're short, that's a fact." Ed exploded off the couch seat, "WHAT DID YOU SA-" his outburst was cut off when Winry hit him over the head with her wrench again. "How do you even do that?" he whined, he was _sure_ he had seen her wrench on the other side of the room only moments ago.

Winry stood up, looking down on him as he sat up and glared up at her, "Ed, if you want my honest opinion…" she trailed off, and Ed raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue. Winry put her wrench down, and, while facing away from Ed, she told him softly, "you're fine how you are. If you were any taller, any less short-tempered, then you wouldn't be Ed."

Ed's eyes widened and his cheeks reddened slightly, he looked down at his hands and rubbed the back of his neck, "oh…" he said softly, "uh… thanks Winry."

Winry turned around, cheeks slightly red, "don't worry about it, Ed. But you know, I'll be expecting a bonus for the bother of having to come all the way out to Central for you."

"Yeah… yeah."

* * *

**Ed and Winry love each other so much~**

**I was going to include Hughes in there, but I figured it would make it a bit too long, so I killed him off...**

**And now I've made myself sad...**

**If you like what I did, then you can request and yaddiya.**

**And let me know what you thought! I can't improve my writing if I don't get reviews or anything.**

**Okay, bye XD**


	2. AlMei Romance: Picnic

** Okay, this is an AlMei, but it also has a bit of LingFan... now that I think about it, it has ****_tiny_**** bit of EdWin too so...**

**Wow... I didn't think I would be this busy during the school holidays, but it's like... I have all these things I wanna get done so I'm just... busy busy busy.**

**Not that that's a bad thing.**

**Anyway, I don't FMAB, this doesn't really have spoilers in it, but its set after the anime when Al goes to Xing to learn alkahestry and all that sort of thing.**

**Um... enjoy!**

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**AlMei Romance:**

"NO AL! I've told you already a hundred times! The dragon's pulse is- are you even listening anymore!?" Al slumped against the table exhaustedly, "Mei," he began, smiling weakly, "we've been at this all day… could we take a quick break maybe?" Mei put her hands on her hips, "honestly Al, we've only just started, you can't take a break until you start _listening_ to what I'm saying!" She frowned, looking as angry as a girl with her cute face could.

Al sighed, "okay, Mei," he could tell he wasn't going to win this argument. Mei's stern expression softened and she smiled, "I… suppose we could take a short break." Al looked up at the girl from his position on his seat, he stared at Mei for a few moments then smiled, nodding, "yeah, why don't we go out and look at the gardens? I've been wanting to do that since I arrived a few days ago."

Only four days ago, Al had arrived in Xing, for his lessons in alkahestry from the Xingese princess, Mei. He had been teased an awful lot by his older brother, Edward Elric about how eager he had been to go see Mei, until he bought up one of their childhood friends, Winry. Ed had stopped mentioning it shortly after that.

In all honesty though, Al had been excited to see Mei, and that excitement wasn't entirely due to getting to learn about alkahestry. He had been looking forward to spending time with the Xingese girl as well.

They sat outside in the garden together, in the end, they had had a meal made, and they ate that outside, enjoying each other's company and the sounds of nature and… grumbling…?

Mei and Al looked at each other in surprise before realisation dawned on both their faces. Turning towards the source of the sound, Al- with Mei peering over his shoulder- called into the garden, "Ling?" They heard a pained mutter in response and glancing back at Mei- who was clearly struggling to keep herself from giggling at the emperor's plight- got to his feet and headed into the bushes, stumbling upon the prone body of the Xingese emperor- Ling- another friend that Al and Ed had made during past adventures in their own country.

Al bent down beside the teen and seeing the starved expression on the boy's face rolled his eyes, "come on, Ling, how about you join us for lunch?"

* * *

Ling ate Al's entire portion, and then Mei's, then he called for more to be brought and he ate all of that too. In the end, for the two original picnickers, it wasn't so much of a meal as a show, watching Ling's voracious appetite in play.

Once he was finished, Ling stretched out languidly, a satisfied expression on his face, "I think I'll just lie here for a bit," he muttered drowsily, "My Lord!" the three glanced up to see Lan Fan rushing over, "I've been looking all over for you!" Ling grinned, "on second thoughts, I'll be leaving," and he ran off once more, leaving an exasperated Lan Fan behind.

"Why is Ling running away?" Al asked, turning to the raven haired girl who looking extremely put-out, Lan Fan sighed, "he… he told me I should stop worrying about being his bodyguard and just be his friend." Mei and Al looked at the blushing girl in surprise, before Mei asked, "so… then why is he running away?"

Lan Fan crossed her arms, looking down at the floor, clearly uncomfortable talking about this subject, "uh… he decided that if he made my job to difficult, then I would have to quit." Al glanced at Mei sidelong, understanding now, "so he's constantly running away from you?" Lan Fan nodded, before sighing irritably, "what he doesn't understand though is that I _want_ to protect him, it isn't _just_ a matter of duty to me." The two looked at her in surprise and as she realised what she said she started blushing.

"Couldn't he just fire you?" Al asked curiously, Mei shook her head, answering for the other girl, "it's not exactly something you do here… Lan Fan is his only bodyguard, and as emperor, he needs protection. He can hardly fire her, but, if she were to quit… well, that would be a different story." Al mulled this over for a few moments before turning to Lan Fan, "but why don't you just quit, and stay as his friend then?" Lan Fan frowned, "I just ans-" Al shook his head, effectively cutting the girl off, "friends still do everything in their power to protect each other."

Lan Fan gazed at him for a moment, before sighing, "well… regardless of what I may decide, I can hardly tell my L- …Ling if I can't catch up to him." Mei jumped up, "well, just standing around doing nothing won't catch him! If he comes here we'll tell him to talk to you, now go! Go get your man!" Lan Fan paused, pulling back, "w-what?" she gasped, a blush forming on her cheeks, she didn't get any answer beyond Mei pushing her towards the direction Ling had run, shouting, "go! Go! Go!" so she ran off.

Al turned to a satisfied Mei, "you sure were encouraging," he told her mildly. Mei spun around, "those two have been so obviously in _love_ or so long now! Ling's clearly doing something about it, and Lan Fan's just being too stuck in common sense and _duty_ to help!"

Al didn't bother asking about the common sense in getting into a relationship that would defy common sense. It was Mei after all he'd just end up feeling confused by an over exuberant response.

And honestly, he did think that Ling and Lan Fan would be cute together.

* * *

Al sat at the desk, skimming through an alkahestry book, but his mind was wondering, sighing, he placed he rested his chin on his hand, staring off into space thoughtfully. _'It's like everyone's feelings are coming out now that the situation with Father has been dealt with'_ he thought to himself, _'there __**is**__ someone I want to be with, I really want to tell her, seeing how happy everyone else is with the people they love.'_

Mei looked into the room, "have you finished that book yet, Alphonse?" she asked, Al chuckled guiltily, "um… not quite." Mei walked into the room to see where he was up to, "you're only five chapters in!" she exclaimed, "What have you been doing?"

Al sighed, "sorry Mei, I've just been a bit distracted," Mei sighed, before sitting down and leaning back against the seat thoughtfully, "I suppose we could take another break, that picnic we did last time was fun."

Al nodded eagerly and they got up, leaving a slip of paper in the book to mark where he was at, Al followed Mei out of the room to go get some food to eat.

A picnic would be the perfect place to tell Mei how he felt about her.

* * *

**Meh... I kinda wanted to make them kiss, but it just didn't work out that way so... I guess it's okay still.**

**Um... let me know what you thought... next up is an EdAl family one-shot and... yeah.**

**:)**


	3. EdAl Family: A Brother's Hug

**Okay, this is a... basically slightly edited scene from FMAB, it's episode 20, 'Father Before The Grave' (and a thank you to Bec for finding which one I needed), so if you haven't watched this episode yet, don't read this one-shot as it contains spoilers.**

**This more or less follows what actually happens in the scene, I only changed a few things so that Ed hugs Al, because that was what the request asked for, so... I don't own FMAB, and I also don't own most of the events and dialogue that happens in this one-shot.**

**This is dedicated to ****kash30032000**

**Hope you like what I did!**

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**EdAl Family:**

Ed and Winry listened to Al in amazement, the revelation that the spirit inside the body they brought back had been Al, Al's relief that they hadn't hurt anyone else in trying to bring back their mother.

There was knock at the door and the three in the room turned towards the sound, "Mr. Elric? You have a telephone call from Izumi Curtis."

* * *

Ed's face was passive as he listened to his former teacher, _"I did some research, Sig and I looked up our family lines and well, the child that I transmuted, it couldn't… it didn't have a single physical trait that could have come from us. You're onto something aren't you?"_

Ed kept his face blank as he replied, knowing that Al was watching and listening nearby, "yes, I've come to the conclusion that death _is_ permanent." He heard a sigh from the other end of the line, _"so not even transmutation can change that fact. All this time, I thought that I must have missed something, but it was impossible to do in the first place."_

_"Ed!"_ the voice came out sharp and sudden and Ed instinctively straightened up, as though Izumi was standing in front of him and could see the action, "yes ma'am!" There was silence on the end of the phone for a moment, then, "thank you," and she hung up.

Ed stared at the phone in surprise for some moments, "so what did teacher have to say?" Al asked, Ed turned to his younger brother, "well, I'm not really sure why," he began, placing the phone back on the receiver, "but she said, thank you."

* * *

They were headed back up to their room; Ed was halfway up the stairs when he heard Al stop behind him. He turned to see standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"Al?" Al was silent for a moment, before saying in a slightly trembling voice, "this entire time, I've been blaming myself for what happened," Ed gazed at his little brother, saw his hands trembling, but he remained silent, letting him finish what he wanted to say, "I thought it was me, I thought I was the one who killed mum a second time."

Ed gazed at Al with a forlorn expression, "and so did I, Al" he told the younger one, who covered his face with his hands, "thanks brother, thank you." His voice sounded full of tears now as he went on, "I wasn't the one who killed mum after all!"

Ed looked down at Al regretfully, before saying, "but still, none of this changes the fact that I'm the one who put you in that body, and I don't care what it takes, I'm going to make you normal again."

"Brother, I was right there with you, and I knew that there were risks, so quit trying to shoulder all of this on your own," Al spoke over him, "I can't watch you suffer like this, not on your own," he clenched his fists, "I can't just stand back and watch other people get hurt over what I've done, like what happened to Mr. Hughes."

Ed wanted to protest that Al hadn't done anything wrong, the reminder of Hughes, and hearing the guilt and pain his younger brother had been going through, made tears threaten to fall, but he held them back.

"I felt like it was my fault when I found out he was dead, and I told myself that if it meant other people getting hurt, then I don't even _want_ my body back!" Ed nodded, he could understand why Al would think something like that, even though it wasn't Al's fault, Ed would have thought the same thing in his situation.

Al looked up at Ed, "brother, I've met other people who weren't exactly human," Ed could tell Al was thinking of the human chimeras they had run into in the past, along with the homunculi, "but they still managed to live their lives with a purpose. And even in this body, it hasn't stopped other people from treating me like I'm still human. This body could reject me at any time, but it's the same with being human, you never know when you might get sick or die in an accident. So I can still get by like this," Al looked at his hands, "I can live a somewhat normal life and that's how I managed to keep going." Al had lowered his hands and was looking at the bottom of the stairs, Ed forced himself to keep silent and continue to listen to Al, to not protest that he deserved to get his body back, this was something he needed to hear, and something Al needed to tell him.

"But now, I can't _take_ it anymore," almost without thinking, Ed began to move down the stairs again, towards Al. "Because… I can't… I can't take all the nights by myself! It's too lonely, and that's why I have to get back to normal!" And Ed could tell that if Al could, he would be crying now.

Ed stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the armour, as high as he could reach, "don't worry Al," he told the boy, though he knew he couldn't feel the hug itself, he would understand the gesture, even as he spoke, he could feel the boy's trembling cease, remaining silent for some moments, "we'll get your body back."

Al's voice was filled with trust and hope when he spoke, "really?" he stepped back and lightly rapped Al's armour chest, "definitely," he replied confidently.

He turned and ran up the stairs, Al following close behind, "and we'll get your arm and leg back as well brother!" He heard Al call behind him, grinning he replied, with a "sure!"

_'But you first, Al.'_

* * *

**And tada!**

**By the way, Merry Christmas to everyone who reads this, though it's actually a few days late.**

**Hope you liked what I did with this, review and let me know!**

**Next up is a requested EdWin kiss scene (fufu, this'll be fun F3)**


	4. EdWin Romance: Uncertain And Insecure

**Okay... so I wrote this little EdWin fanfic which was a request ;)**

**To do this, I watched the EdWin scene in the last episode because I wanted to make sure I got the wording right, and I got such major feels, I was just sitting there squealing completely forgetting the original reason I was watching it in the first place.**

**Oh... seriously though, that is the ****_cutest_**** scene... my heart.**

**Sorry... just had a moment there...**

**So... basically... Edward's feeling the title (by which I mean Edward's feeling uncertain and insecure and stuff)**

**Set about two years after the anime... not really any spoilers... kinda-ish... but... yeah... not really any actual spoilers in this other then mentions of the EdWin moment that happens in the last episode.**

**Anyway, this one-shot is dedicated to ****Neusuada**

**Enjoy the EdWin!**

**And no, I don't own FMA or FMAB (the things I would do if I did though...)**

* * *

**EdWin Romance:**

Ed was on the train, headed back to Resembool from the West, Al had gone to the East and they had been gone for two years to gather information about cultures and alchemy. Naturally, Ed hadn't learned anywhere _near_ what there was to learn, but now that he could go home, and now that he had someone special waiting for him back there, he found himself wanting to return at least for a small visit. When he spoke to Winry on the phone, she had told him that Al was also coming back for a visit and that had decided it, at the very least, it was a chance to share what knowledge they had gained so far with one another.

However, despite how eager he was to see everyone back in Resembool, he was a little apprehensive, rather, a bit nervous about seeing Winry again after all this time.

_"Equivalent exchange! I'll give you half of my life, so you give me half of yours!"_

In truth, at the time, it must have been a bit of a shock for her, but, after spending two years with her, knowing how he felt, and about to leave, aware that he hadn't been brave enough to do anything, he couldn't allow that. So he had felt like he had to tell her, he couldn't leave without knowing.

But now he wondered about it.

_"Come on… do you have to treat everything like alchemy? The whole equivalent exchange thing is just nonsense!"_

At that time, in that moment, he had been genuinely afraid. Ed didn't get scared by many things, but when he took that chance and laid out his heart for that… amazing, clever, beautiful girl… he had been truly terrified that she would throw it back in his face. That she would break it. Without a second thought.

_"How about I just give you my whole life?"_

It couldn't have been that easy, could it? Ed hadn't thought there was really anything in this world of equal value to getting to spend his entire life with the person he loved. At first, he had thought that it was amazing, then he began to wonder if it was too good to be true.

He had taken her by surprise, telling her that, doing that, then just leaving again. He wasn't even entirely sure about what they were to each other at the moment, were they dating? Or something else?

Ed didn't know a lot about relationships and not knowing much about something frustrated him. But it was one of those things that really, one required experience to know about. And in that department, Ed had to admit, he had no experience.

What if, when he arrived in Resembool, he were to discover that Winry had changed her mind? Two years apart is hardly the best way to start a relationship, and though they often spoke on the phone to one another, he didn't think it was really the same thing.

_'I miss her… a lot, I've been missing everyone, to be honest, now that I don't have to search for a way to get Al back to normal, I feel as though I could be at home. But this is something I wanted to do, I guess knowing that I did have a family, and a home to return to made it a bit harder. I miss Winry, I miss Al and Pinako, I would have liked to visit mum and Hoh- … no… __**dad's**__ grave a bit more than the one time before I left. I guess I'll have a lot to tell them both about when I get back. Everyone else too.'_ He wanted to be with everyone, and he especially wanted to be with Winry, though he didn't think he would ever be able to say that to her face.

He had told her that he cared about her, when they were speaking on the phone, he even managed to get out that he missed her a lot, though that had been more embarrassing than he would care to admit. The one thing he had yet to tell the blonde, was that he loved her.

It hadn't felt right saying it over the phone.

She hadn't said it either.

He figured that really, common sense pointed to her reasons being the same as his, trying to say something so heartfelt into an electrical device would feel wrong. Especially if it was something you'd never said to that person before.

But part of him, the insecure, uncertain part, wondered if she didn't say it because she didn't feel it.

Had her feelings faded?

He hadn't even ended up needing to come back for repairs.

_'Maybe I could have come back for visits before this,'_ he had often thought this to himself, but he had wanted to learn what he wanted to learn, as quickly as possible. So that when he went back to Resembool, to Winry, he could stay there. Because he had a feeling he wouldn't' want to leave once he got back.

But after two years of just phone calls and the occasional letter, the ache in his chest had increased to the point where he couldn't bear it. He just wanted to see her. To hold her in his arms. He wouldn't be okay until he could.

_"You are so incredible."_

He had meant that completely- probably more than she had realised- when he had said it to her before leaving. It was completely true.

_"Thanks for cheering me up."_

It was something she had always been able to do, whether intentionally or not, no matter what it was, no matter how he felt, Ed had always managed to deal with the situation, if she was there with him, or in his thoughts. She always managed to make everything seem okay.

_"I'll miss you."_

He had been completely right when he had told her that, though he hadn't realised how much he _would_ miss her. He still held the memories of her being in his arms. And part of him couldn't help but wonder if he would be able to relive that memory when he got back.

He believed in Winry, but sometimes, feelings can fade can't they? People can change.

_'I suppose, in the end, that's what I'm most afraid of.'_ If he got back, and she didn't feel that way about him anymore, she didn't want to have anything more to do with him… he didn't know what he would do.

_"Resembool station, now arriving,"_ Ed glanced up at the speaker, before looking out of the window, seeing the familiar landscape outside. Al had arrived in Resembool three days ago, apparently, in the company of Mei, who had claimed she wanted to see what Al's hometown looked like. Ed had every intention to tease his younger brother at any given opportunity for that.

Steam billowed as the train slowly pulled to a stop. Heart hammering, he got carefully to his feet, stretching, before reaching up into the luggage compartment and pulling out his suitcase. He edged past the few other people, slowly getting to their feet; he hesitated for a moment, and someone pushed past him.

Swinging the suitcase up, over his shoulder, he reached the door, walking out, of the train he looked around to try and spot someone familiar.

Winry had said they'd all be waiting for him when he got there, but for a moment he couldn't see anyone. Then he heard a shout, he looked over to his left.

The first person he saw was Al- looking happy and healthy- next to him was Mei. He didn't exactly notice who else was there, because then his eyes focused in on the blonde, blue-eyed woman standing in front of them all, with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face.

She ran towards him, and before he had time to react, she had wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly, "I missed you, idiot," she whispered to him, and Ed smiled.

All he could think was 'thank you' as all those now ridiculous insecurities and uncertainties faded away.

He wrapped his arms around her, "I missed you too," he replied with a smile, before tilting her chin up to see her face.

"I love you Winry."

And he did something he had wanted to do for a long time, bending down a little he pressed his lips to hers gently, wrapping his arms around her and closing his eyes in satisfaction as she began to kiss back.

_'I'll never leave you again.'_

* * *

**He had to come back at some point, I like to think that he came back for a visit then just couldn't bring himself to leave Winry again... so instead they got married and had two kids F3**

**I got a request from ****LZ**** for a one-shot about Fuery and his hero-crush on Mustang, I couldn't reply in PM so I wanted to ask here because I don't want to do a one-shot only to find out I did it wrong or anything so... do you mean like... a one-shot about how Fuery admires MUstang?**

**And sorry if this is obvious to everyone else out there, I'm just stupid -.-**

**Um... review... let me know if the EdWin was satisfactory of... what and... yeah!**


	5. Fuery x Mustang Hero-Crush: First Day

**I just... yeah... my excuse for may kinda (really) bad writing is in the author's note for PKH chapter 4, I don't wanna explain it again, basically I'm just really tired, so I can't guarantee that the next few chapter I upload are good.**

**I hope I did okay with this, part of me is really worried that I didn't get the whole 'hero-crush' idea down very well, and I think the ending is average at best, so I'd like to apologize in advance for that.**

**By the way, I don't know how often I'll be able to update for the following week, because I won't have constant connection to the internet, sorry, I'll do my best.**

**Anyway, I don't own FMA**

**And with the ranks for all the characters and such, please bear with me, I don't know anything regarding that so I just... improvised**

* * *

**Mustang x Fuery (Hero-crush)mance:**

Sergeant Major Kain Fuery worked under the prestigious Flame Alchemist, Colonel Roy Mustang, as part of the Mustang unit. It was something he was undeniably proud of.

He was the 'pawn' in Mustang's unit, in accordance to the Flame Alchemist's naming of his grouped after chess pieces. At first he had been confused, and a little upset to be considered a pawn, aren't they the pieces mostly just sacrificed to draw the opponent's attention away from more important pieces?

It was explained to him that this was not so, when he had asked the Lieutenant Colonel about it, the man had replied, "it is true that the pawn is meant to be the weakest piece in chess, it has very little battle ability, only being able to attack diagonally and move forward one square at a time. But the pawn has the ability to become something better, it can be promoted to a more powerful piece. You are a highly important part of this unit, we rely on you especially for intelligence, I did not label you the pawn in light of any lack of skill on your behalf."

Fuery had always admired the Flame alchemist, before he even began at the military, after learning this from Lieutenant Colonel Mustang, that admiration increased tenfold.

* * *

When he had finished his training and had been working in the military for a few years, he got assigned to work under Roy Mustang, his excitement had been overflowing, he hadn't had a chance to meet the man yet, only seeing him occasionally in the hallway, now he was getting to work with him!

Of course, as these things always work out, it was rather different to what he expected.

* * *

The short brunette looked nervously up at the door, _'somehow, it feels like it did back when I first applied to join the military,'_ he thought to himself nervously.

He hesitated in the hallway, unsure whether to knock or simply walk in, or maybe there was someone he had to introduce himself to first?

After a few moments of indecisiveness, the young man took a deep breath, pushed open the door and… slipped in, trying to make as little sound as possible, _'I don't want to disturb anyone,'_ he told himself determinedly, _'that's the only reason!'_ The sight inside made him stop, and wonder if he had the right room after all, maybe the First Lieutenant had a twin or something?

A lazy, procrastinating twin.

He stood frozen, mind taking in the three men and woman working diligently at the desks, that was to be expected of course, what his mind had trouble processing was the attractive raven haired man sitting a large desk with a window behind it, a pile of papers in front of him.

Sleeping.

_'This can't be the famous Flame Alchemist, hero of Ishval, can it!?_' He wondered nervously whether he should say something, but before he could bring himself to even move, the pretty blonde who he now recognised as second lieutenant Riza Hawkeye- the woman renowned for her excellent aim and sniper work- walked up to the desk.

She stood in front of his desk, arms crossed, a carefully neutral expression on her face, "you aren't asleep are you?" she paused, before raising her voice, "First Lieutenant Roy Mustang, sir!" The man started, pulling away from his desk and looking around hazily before noticing the blonde standing in front of him, "you haven't been slacking off, have you sir?" Roy paled before shaking his head, "I was… uh… simply taking a quick break, I'll get right back to work!"

Riza waited until Roy reluctantly picked a file of the large stack in front of him and started working, then she nodded before turning to head back to her own seat; that was when she noticed Fuery, "oh, are you the new member for this unit?" she asked him, Fuery stiffened, "uh-um! I'm… uh… yes… um…!" he panicked internally, if this woman was bad enough to scare the Flame Alchemist she must be terrible!

_'The famous Hero for Ishval is a slacker! The well-renowned Hawkeye is a __**terrifying**__ woman! What is even happening here?'_

Obviously noting his panic, Riza smiled, speaking in a much gentler voice, "welcome, I look forward to working with you; sorry about what you just saw." Fuery relaxed slightly, shaking his head and managing a smile, "no, that's fine; it was just a bit of a surprise, that's all."

Fuery ended up being seated next to a man called Vato Falman- an Information Specialist- and across from the Officer-in-Charge, Jean Havoc, meaning that he was the soldier in charge of Falman, a man called Breda and Fuery himself.

Fuery spent the whole day out of sorts, somehow, he managed to get his work done, but he knew that that was most likely because he had been given less work seeing as it was his first day under new office.

* * *

Fuery slumped against his desk in defeat, _'this definitely isn't like how I thought it would be,'_ he frowned, _'no… the work is I guess, it's more that the __**people**__ are nothing like how I imagined them.'_

"Mustang's a very ambitious man," Fuery started as Falman sat back next to him, "huh?" he asked, confused, "his goal is to be furhrer." Fuery frowned, "but he…" he trailed off, unsure how to finish that sentence without sounding like he was questioning the man's leadership.

Falman smiled, "I know, it's hard to believe seeing his work ethic, but we're all as dead-set as he is on him being furhrer." Fuery was silent for a moment, trying to work out if asking why would get him in trouble in the end, he didn't have to, "as you obviously know, the Lieutenant served in Ishval, his one-of-a-kind flame alchemy was a major part in our winning the war. However, after seeing all the carnage and tragedy caused by him, he made a vow to do everything he can to stop this from happening again. He would become Furhrer and make sure he'd never have to follow an order he believed was wrong he would bring back diplomacy and make Amestris a peaceful nation.

"All of us in Mustang's unit would lay down our lives to help fulfil the Lieutenant's goal," the man finished before turning back to Fuery who was now staring at Roy with wide eyes.

All the admiration that had been leaching away during the day, came back ten times stronger, he jumped up, "I'll follow you to then ends of the earth, sir!" he cried excitedly.

Everyone paused in their work to look at the young man who was quickly realising how he had let his emotions take control of him and was now blushing. Roy raised an eyebrow, "um… that's good to know, I'm glad I have such a loyal soldier, uh… please get back to your work now."

Embarrassed, Fuery nodded, before quickly seating himself and grabbing the nearest file to immerse himself in.

* * *

That admiration had never waned after that day, in Fuery's eyes, the now _Colonel_ Mustang could do no wrong. He'd get teased often for the way he'd take Colonel Mustang's every word as law, the fact that he could be impressed by the man's smallest actions.

"Geez, Fuery, you got a crush on the guy or something?" was a common question. It wasn't a _crush_, he admired the man a lot, but it wasn't a _crush_. He would always respond the same way.

Finally, one time, after denying it being an actual crush and pointing out how he was utterly in love with a certain friendly, brunette bookworm who had recently begun working in the military, Havoc rolled his eyes, placing a cigarette between his teeth, he asked the young man, "what would you call it then?"

Fuery stuttered, trying to think of an appropriate term that would satisfy the men, "it's a bit of a… hero-crush I guess."

There was a chorus of 'oh' with the men all glancing at each other until Havoc spoke up again.

"So it is a crush, then."

* * *

**Yeah... I got the whole... Roy's speech regarding Fuery's being the pawn off FMA wiki, the inspiration comes from there so the credit for that part goes to there as well I guess**

**Review, request and... maybe check out some of my other stories if you liked this (and check out my friend AkuBeku's profile page, she has the best stories) **

**Still tired, but I'll be uploading a few more at least.**


	6. Bross Romance: Jealousy

**Okay! I did an alternative ending for this, I'll just have the story going along however, then I'll have a '1.' in bold, before the first ending, and a '2' to symbolize the start of the alternative ending.**

**I don't own FMA**

**This is set in Fullmetal Alchemist (not Brotherhood) after they went Resembool and Hohenheim flirted with Maria and Denny was in tears because of it**

**Forgot to mention, the last chapter was dedicated to ****LZ**

**This chappie is dedicated to my awesome friend Bec, rather ****AkuBeku**

**I think that's everything I meant to say...**

**Sleepy -.-**

**Well, enjoy the Bross at any rate!**

* * *

**Bross Romance:**

Maria Ross, Second Lieutenant didn't understand why her co-worker a certain Denny Brosh had been _sulking_. Ever since they got back from Resembool.

They had gone there in the first place to warn Ed and Al about the military being after them, only to find the two brothers hadn't arrived there yet. So they decided to wait for them, sure that their home town would be the place they would return to. She had got to meet the boys' father, a charming (and attractive) man with whom she had had a very in depth conversation with, despite their initial reason for being there, being so serious, she had very much enjoyed that conversation.

That is, until Ed appeared out of nowhere and kicked the man in the face, shouting something about him being a 'perverted old man' or something.

It seemed Ed held somewhat of a grudge against his father.

But back to the current problem.

Denny.

Maria was on guard duty with Denny, she stood ramrod straight, staring determinedly forward- minus the few glances she cast a Denny who it seemed was to depressed to even sleep on the job.

It was just the two of them, and with the blonde completely closed to conversation (not that Maria would start a conversation in the middle of an assignment) the atmosphere was somewhat… dull.

Maria almost wished Major Armstrong would make an appearance, simply to liven up place. Almost.

She sighed, with another glance at Denny- who was studiously ignoring her- she resigned herself to a long shift.

* * *

Maria sighed in relief, only five more minutes then her shift would be over. Denny hadn't spoken once, and Maria could only think of the conversation she had had with Hohenheim.

She glanced at Denny before looking straight once more, allowing herself a small smile, Denny was still pouting like a child, the difference between him and Ed and Al's father was astronomical.

She knew which one she preferred, though, it wasn't a hard decision.

Her conversation with Hohenheim had been interesting and enjoyable, but she'd take even boring guard duty with a sulking Denny over that any day.

Hohenheim was an interesting and clearly brilliant man, but the age difference was too difficult to ignore, not to mention he had been married and had had two children already, which apparently he hadn't been the best father to.

At least, those were the reasons she told herself.

She usually tried to ignore the fact that she had enjoyed spending time with Denny- no matter what they were doing- before she had met Hohenheim. It's not like anything could come of it anyway, due to the fraternisation laws.

She would just have to resign herself to being his co-worker and- maybe, hopefully- his friend.

"Why did you act like you were enjoying being with _that guy_ so much?" she turned at the sound of Denny's disgruntled voice, "what?" she asked, confused as to the sudden, seemingly random choice of topic, "this isn't the best place to be talking about something like that."

"I-I… I can never seem to make you smile and blush like that!" he finally blurted out, Maria frowned in confusion, "when you were talking with Ed and Al's dad, he was flirting with you and you didn't stop him! You were blushing and smiling and enjoying yourself a lot! I've been trying to think of a time where I've been able to make you smile or blush like that, and I can't, can you!?"

Maria stared in shock at the blonde man; she hadn't expected something like this, ever, she hadn't dared _hope_ for something like this, "I enjoy talking with you," she managed finally. He shook his head, "you were acting like you really liked the guy, a lot! I bet you would have gone on a date with him if he had asked."

Maria couldn't believe what she was hearing, the blonde sounded as though he had been mulling over this for some days, as though it had really affected him, _'surely he wouldn't think about something like that so seriously, right? Unless…'_ her eyes widened as realisation struck her, "Denny, why does this matter so much to you."

The blonde man flushed, hesitating, "because I-"

"First Lieutenant, Darren Blake, here to relieve Sergeant, Denny Brosh."

"Major, Kyle Norman, here to relieve Second Lieutenant, Maria Ross."

The two turned to the officers standing to attention in front of them, Maria realised with a start that their shift was over. As she saluted back at the two men, handing over the duty to the other officer, she bit back the feeling of annoyance at their being interrupted, _'it's probably best that I don't know,' _she thought to herself, trying to cheer herself up.

* * *

They had both signed out and had walked out of the complex together, at the point where they were to part, Maria hesitated, unsure whether to just say goodbye to the man, or not. The both ended up standing there awkwardly until Maria took the initiative, "well then, bye," she waved a hand in farewell, only to be stopped short when Denny reached forward and grabbed said hand.

She stared at him in surprise; he muttered so softly that she had to strain to hear him, "the reason it bothered me so much… I would have thought it was obvious, I… love you… I've loved you since the day I first saw you."

Maria's heart lifted, before she remembered, and all the joy that had started to swell in her deflated like a popped balloon, she pulled her hand away, stepping back. Denny misinterpreted her action, "I knew it, you're in love with _that_ guy, Hohenheim, right?" he pulled away dejectedly and Maria's heart constricted.

**1.**

She stepped toward him, "I did…" she began, trailing off, uncertainly, Denny glanced at her, unsure what she meant to say, "I did enjoy the conversation with Hohenheim, I'm not going to deny that. But that doesn't mean I have to be in love with him, besides, I'm already in love with someone else."

She saw Denny's eyes widen, filling with comprehension, "I feel the same way about you," she finally said.

The blonde stepped forward and grabbed her hand, eyes filled with hope, "does that mean…" he stopped when Maria shook her head, she managed a half smile, "unless Mustang becomes Furhrer and abolishes the fraternisation laws, we can't."

Reluctantly, she pulled away from Denny and turned to go, "just you wait! When Mustang _does_ become Furhrer, when he _does_ abolish the fraternisation laws, the first thing I'll do is ask you to marry me! You better be ready!"

She turned in surprise at the proclamation, Denny was standing there, pointing at her, with a determined expression on his face, she smiled, _'it's one of the reasons I love him so much, I guess,'_ she thought to herself, _'that stubbornness and almost childlike determination.'_

She nodded in recognition before turning and heading off once more, after a few steps she called out over her shoulder, loud enough that the blonde could hear her, "I'll be waiting… Denny."

* * *

**2.**

She wanted to deny it and tell him that he was wrong, but if she did, if she told him of her feelings, what would happen then? He might want to have a relationship, and in the end, it'd just be more painful, because they couldn't. They worked in the military; they weren't _allowed_ to get involved.

So she remained silent instead, and Denny took that silence for confirmation, he breathed in sharply, turning on his heel and walking away. Every step was like a blow to her heart, but Maria stayed silent, it was for the best after all.

* * *

**Personally, I like the first ending first, but I wanted to write the other ending as well because... yeah... no specific reason... just felt like doing it.**

**Next up is a requested Royai**


	7. Royai Romance: Goodnight

**Okay, someone asked me to Royai-ify a scene in FMAB, the scene requested involves major spoilers, it's regarding... when Riza figures a certain something out, and got warned by... someone or whatever, then Roy calls up asking if she wants flowers or anything. I was asked to make it that Roy goes over to her house afterwards to check up on her instead of waiting till the the next day.**

**So... this is dedicated to ****kash30032000**

**Hope you like this!**

**I don't own FMAB**

* * *

**Royai Romance:**

"I'm sorry to bother you so late," Riza stood in the entryway to the Furhrer's home, holding several files against her chest, "but I have some urgent documents the Furher needs to see, right away." She turned to the older, brunette woman who walked towards her, dressed in a nightgown with a shawl around her shoulders- the Furhrer's wife, "oh my dear," the woman said, "I'm sorry but, my husband isn't home right now." Riza held out the documents, "it would be wonderful if he could look these over by tomorrow," the woman took the proffered documents, smiling slightly at the blonde woman standing before her, "that is urgent," she began, "but don't you worry, I'll make sure that he does."

Riza smiled gratefully, "well thank you, I appreciate-" her eyes widened as she sensed something dangerous creeping up behind her, she spun around to see the Furhrer's son- Selim Bradley- standing there, looking up at her with a vaguely curious expression, "Selim, shouldn't' you be in bed," his mother reprimanded the boy lightly. He turned to her and smiled a little, "I was, but then I heard the door," the smile widened, showing the hope he had felt, "I thought it might be father coming home."

As Riza gazed at the innocent boy, she pushed down the fear and sighed in relief, unsure what she had been expecting but glad it hadn't been anything dangerous. She smiled at the boy as his mother spoke, "this is your father's assistant, Lieutenant Hawkeye," the boy smiled innocently up at her, "it's very nice to meet you Lieutenant Hawkeye," "it's nice to meet you," she replied.

"You must be working hard to be up so late," "not really, I just had to bring your father some documents. But I should be going now, sorry I woke you," she bowed slightly to the boy in farewell, "good night Selim."

As she spoke the butler walked up behind the boy and reached out a hand to him, "yes," he said, "come, Selim, you need your proper rest, otherwise you might oversleep." The small boy looked up at the butler with a small smile still present, "I know," he replied, before turning to Riza and bowing.

As he walks off Riza commented, "he seems like a really sharp kid," and she could hear the pride in the mother's voice as she replied with a small laugh, "he certainly is, he's the pride of my life, I know it's impolite to brag about my son, but that shouldn't apply since he's adopted. I really shouldn't act so surprised though, he _is_ related to my husband, so he must have some of his genes."

Riza's smile faded, "he… he's not related to you?" she asked, shocked, the mother smiled, "oh no," Riza's eyes widened, _'but how is that possible?'_

* * *

Riza walked through the night purposefully, _'this just doesn't add up,'_ she thought to herself, _'the Colonel told me that King Bradley was raised as a test subject, he doesn't have any family. He didn't even know his parents, and I got that strange feeling from Selim. Could he be…?'_

"So, you put it all together," Riza stopped, eyes widening as she heard the strange voice, distorted, almost as though more than one person were speaking, she didn't turn towards the direction of that voice, her training kicking in and stopping her from acting so impulsively. Eyes bore menacingly into her back, but she remained still, "all thanks to my stepmother," the voice continued, "she just doesn't know how to shut up," Riza's voice was steady, betraying none of her inner fear as she spoke, "but you, your baleful presence also gave it away. I recognised it somehow, but I'm just now realising why," she was looking up at the sky as she spoke, some clouds drifted past the crescent moon, revealing it's light, "it's the same bloodlust I felt when Gluttony tried to attack me from behind, so _Selim Bradley,_ what exactly is your true identity?"

The disconcerting voice spoke once more, "you've got some nerve to ask me a question like that, considering the circumstance, such bravery, you've also shown good judgement by keeping your gun holstered, such a move would only get you killed," Riza bit back her fear and spoke once more, ignoring the shadows that seemed to be moving around her, "I'm guessing you're a _homunculus_ like Gluttony," she quickly rebuked her own statement, realising, "no, you've got some kind of _pressure_ coming from you that he didn't have."

"I'm offended that you would even put Gluttony and I in the same league, you ask my name, its Pride, and I was the _first_ homunculus."

Riza was quiet for a few moments, before asking in slightly unsteady voice, "You said you were the first homunculus, correct? What do you mean by that?" "Just what I told you," Riza had to stop herself from flinching as she felt something wrap around her legs, climbing upwards.

It felt cold, dangerous and dark, "are you actually trying to get information out of me? You're a courageous one aren't you?" Riza gritted her teeth as it wrapped around her neck, not tightly enough to choke, and as Selim, or rather, _Pride_ continued talking it came to her cheek and rested their lightly, "have you considered joining us?"

She didn't even think about it, forcing out in a more steady tone than before, "why would I? I'd just be a _pawn_ to you." "So that's a no? that's too bad, oh well," at that the shadows moved and Riza flinched slightly as the one resting on her cheek swiped it lightly, cutting her and drawing blood.

She looked back, not moving her head, forcing a contemptuous smile, "are you trying to humour me with your empty threats? It's just _wasteful_ to kill your hostage," there was laughter and the shadows drew back, "how perceptive you are, just remember, _Lieutenant_, no matter where you are, _I_ will be watching you, from the shadows…" at those last words, Riza finally spin around with a small gasp, but Pride was gone.

* * *

Pride's words, his threat, hung in her mind as Riza opened the door to her apartment, it was dark inside, when she looked in she saw bright eyes staring at her from the depths of the shadows, Riza gasped, before Black Hayate walked towards her, his tail wagging. She sighed in relief, looking at Black Hayate before turning on the lights, closing the door and sliding against the wall, exhaling shakily, before interlocking her hands and leaning her forehead on them, her body was tense as she remembered Pride's warning, "no matter where you are, _I_ will be watching you, from the shadows…"

At that moment, the telephone rang, breaking her out of her unpleasant reminiscence; she looked towards the source of the sound, for a moment before getting to her feet and walking over to the phone. She stood there as it rang two more times, forcing herself to reach forward and pick it up, she spoke into the receiver, images of Pride and Wrath flashing through her mind, "hello?"

"Hello there, Madame, this is your neighbourhood florist," the cheerful, slightly flirtatious voice was completely at odds to what she had expected, but it was definitely not unwelcome. She made herself sigh irritably, and to cover up her relief- and sudden affection- spoke in an irritable voice, "what are talking about, Colonel?"

"Uh, sorry, I kinda got drunk and somehow bought a cartful of flowers, you wanna do me a favour and take some of my hands?" Riza's hand came up to her forehead and she sighed. Roy's voice was suddenly sharp and alert, "what's wrong?" Riza started in surprise, "did something happen?" she paused for a moment, "no, sir, it's nothing," Roy's voice was insistent yet steady, "are you sure?"

Riza wanted to tell him, but Pride's words echoed through her mind and she simply replied, "yes sir, everything's fine," she remembered his initial request, "and sorry to let you down, but I don't even _own_ a flower vase, thanks for thinking of me though, have a good night," she paused as he spoke once more, before replying with a short, "okay, bye," and hanging up the receiver.

She sighed and a small, fond smile came onto her face, she turned to Black Hayate who was sitting at her feet, wrapping her arms around the small dog she hugged him, petting his head, "it's amazing how uncanny his timing is," she said to the dog softly.

* * *

Roy stared at the receiver, his emotions in turmoil, uncertain; there had definitely been something wrong, but if he went to speak with her, a private meeting like that could come to the attention of King Bradley, he could put her in more danger; he could surely speak to her tomorrow when they were at work.

He put the receiver back in place, before thinking of how silent she had been, how subdued, something had been seriously wrong, it couldn't wait. That decided, he left the phone booth and headed over to his car. It was still swamped with flowers but that didn't matte, not anymore, he scooped out the ones in the driver's seat, leaving them on the sidewalk, before getting in and shutting the door.

The motion caused a small rose to fall of the pile filling the rest of the car, he glanced at it for a moment, it was quite beautiful, with dark red petals blossoming outwards in the familiar ruffle-pattern that all roses take, he paused for a moment, before placing it in his lap and starting the car.

* * *

Riza had fed Black Hayate and was now kneeling on the ground, gazing at the dog while he ate, mind far away. She couldn't help but glance around her every now and then, though the Colonel's call had managed to calm her down, the fear still gripped her, if not as avidly as before.

There was a knock on the door and she stumbled to her feet, surprised, she definitely had not been expecting visitors. She walked over, hesitating at the door knob before the knock sounded again, she opened the door apprehensively to see Colonel Mustang on her doorstep, a dark red rose tucked into his top button and a serious expression on his face. "Can I come in? I hope I'm not interrupting anything."  
Riza glanced around him to see a car practically overflowing with flowers, registering her surprise, Roy shrugged, "I had to just discard a whole bunch of them before I could even get into the car," he told her.

Riza felt a smile tugging at her lips and she had to bite it back, her concern over Pride while still present, was slowly ebbing away, simply by the man's being there.

Remembering herself and the fact that her superior was still standing outside her door in the middle of the night, she stepped back with a murmured, "come in, sir," motioning for him to enter.

* * *

Roy sat with his hands interlocked, staring thoughtfully off into the distance as Riza made a cup of coffee for both him and herself to drink. When she had first answered the door, Roy had seen a moment of fear and apprehension before it had quickly given way to relief, which passed as quickly to settle on the familiar, vaguely irritated expression. Riza wouldn't have realised that he had seen this, but Roy always found himself looking at the woman. He had memorised every facial expression she made, he knew how to tell if she was lying to him, or hiding something from him; fear was something she didn't express often, but he had recognised it instantly.

"Sorry, I seem to be out of sugar at the moment," his thoughts were interrupted by Riza placing a steaming mug in front of him. They drank in silence until Roy spoke in a carefully neutral tone, "so what is the problem, Lieutenant?" the blonde started, looking up at him in surprise, he noted the way her hands clenched around her mug, "nothing, sir," Roy moved to persist when he saw the look she was giving him, _'not now,'_ he raised an eyebrow, _'so she feels she can't tell me? That it isn't safe to at the moment,'_ he thought on that for a moment, tapping his fingers thoughtfully on the fabric of the armrest before deciding, he trusted Riza's judgement, he trusted that she would tell him when she deemed it safe or necessary to do, he trusted that there was a specific reason that she couldn't tell him now, most of all, he simply trusted her.

So he sighed and relented, not mentioning it again in any of their following conversations.

* * *

It was late in the night when Roy finally got to his feet and mentioned that he should go, "I've wasted your time quite enough, you probably want to get to sleep," he told her. Riza shook her head, "its fine, sir," she told the raven, and in truth, it was, she knew she still needed to tell him about Selim- she didn't have any way to at the moment- but her concern and total fear over the subject had waned, and she found herself a lot more calmer and collected than before, "thank you for visiting," she told him, and she meant it completely.

Maybe he realised that, because Roy smiled at her words, "it was a pleasure," he told her; he looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before plucking the rose of his suit and placing it in her hair, tucking it behind one ear, "Colonel?" Riza asked, startled by the sudden affectionate action. He looked at her appraisingly for a moment, "beautiful," a slightly teasing smile spread across his face as he added in mock surprise, "oh, the flower's pretty too, I guess."

With that said, he smiled at Riza, and with a "goodnight, Lieutenant, he turned on his heel and headed off to his car. Riza stood leaning against the doorframe, she could make out the Colonel's car as he drove away and she smiled.

_'Goodnight, Roy.'_

* * *

**Hee hee... the Royai**

**3**


	8. Hughes Family: Proof

**I just have this little head-canon where Hughes is so proud of his family because they're like... proof that he's allowed to be happy and stuff, that he was actually really affected by the war in Ishval but moved on for them and stuff... so... this was created**

**I also have a bit of a head-canon where Hughes kinda assumes the role of father to Ed and Al, so that showed a little in this too**

**I don't own FMA or FMAB**

**This contains spoilers regarding Hughes and... um... something that happens to him**

**It also has mentions to the OVA 'Another Man's Battlefield'**

**Mentions of Royai**

**Well... enjoy!**

* * *

**Hughes Family:**

Hughes loved his family; he was so proud of his daughter and of his wife. They were the most precious things to him in the world and he would do anything he could to protect them and to keep them happy. He survived the war at Ishval and didn't let the guilt of what he had done weigh on the rest of his family, bearing the burden, but moving on, and smiling, for his wife- Gracia- and later, for his daughter- Elicia- too.

He often bragged about his darling daughter, and his beautiful wife, showing anyone and everyone multiple photos of them both again and again to the point where they knew to expect it whenever they spoke to him. But he had reason to be proud of them. He had reason to brag about them, because he- Maes Hughes, officer of the military, supporter of his friend, Roy Mustang- had managed to find someone who loved him, as much as he loved her. He had found someone who he wanted to fight to protect, who he would come back home to and survive for, no matter what, he had found the reason he had joined the military in the first place.

* * *

When Hughes stepped off the train with Roy, exhausted and heavy-hearted after the massacre at Ishval, he had been dispirited, yet he did his best to not show it. Instead focusing on looking forward to seeing Gracia again after so long, he looked around trying to spot her, "she said she'd meet me here," he muttered to himself.

Whilst in Ishval, Hughes had realised something important, he loved Gracia more than life itself, and he hated being separated from her, he hated the idea of her being alone and the fact that she wasn't his completely. So he decided that he would do everything he could to survive the war, and make it home, so he could tell her just that, and ask her to spend the rest of her life with him.

He would ask her to marry him.

"Maes!" he turned at the sound of that familiar and oh-so-beautiful voice, to see her running towards him, waving and smiling. Elation filled him and he ran towards her calling out her name, when they reached each other he hugged her tightly, holding her and never wanting to let go.

He wanted to make sure he'd never have to.

_'This is why I joined the military,'_ he thought to himself, _'to protect the woman I love, and now that I've found her, I don't intend to lose her.'_

So he asked her, whispering into her ear those precious four words and remaining silent as she pulled away to look at him in shock. His heart twisted painfully, he didn't want to let go, as she stared at him, eyes wide, he felt a dread that she would refuse, that she would throw his love back at him, say she didn't want something like that.

Instead, the woman smiled and hugged him again tightly, crying "yes, Maes, of course I will!" and Hughes hugged her once more tightly, almost laughing with the relief and happiness that caused his heart to swell, as though he had to express it somehow. Let the whole world know that he, Maes Hughes, was getting married.

_'She's really __**my **__Gracia now, one hundred percent.'_

She was the only one for him, the only woman he would ever love, and she was proof.

Proof that he was allowed to love and be loved, despite the things he had done in Ishval, the crimes he had committed under the pretext of being an Amestrian soldier following orders.

When he looked at Gracia, the faces of those he had killed- the face of his once-comrade- faded away and he was able to believe he had the right to be happy.

* * *

Holding the small body in his arm, sensing the little girl's fragility, seeing her vibrancy and life… Hughes found he had been wrong when he had believed there would only be one girl he would love, because now he was holding another, _'and soon, hopefully, she'll be walking and talking and calling me __**daddy**__!'_

He couldn't believe that he had helped make this wonderful creature; he had taken life away, but now, he had helped to create life (though he hadn't had the main role, that was for sure, that award goes to Gracia), and he couldn't help but smile as he gazed upon the small child's face.

* * *

Little Elicia took her first hesitant steps towards her father, reaching out for him, before falling forward, he caught her before she hit the ground, lifting her up and spinning her around, hugging her closely, there were, of course, many pictures taken and shown from that experience.

* * *

Elicia's first birthday was marked by multiple gifts and a large celebration- not too large though, daddy didn't want to tire out his precious little girl.

Hughes took many more photos of both his wife and daughter, commemorating the occasion, he had every intention to brag to Roy- and really, anyone else he could get to listen- about them both.

After all, Hughes had done a lot of good in the army- or so people say- but despite all of that, those two were his biggest achievement.

* * *

"You need to get a wife," was the common statement said by Hughes to his old friend Roy, and he meant it more than the man realised.

With Gracia, Hughes had been able to move on from the things he had done, he had been able to smile and laugh and joke, he had been able to live.

With Gracia, he had created Elicia, and between the two, Hughes found himself able to let go of his guilt and live happily.

Roy was his closest friend, so he wanted him to be able to do the same.

He seemed pretty close to that Lieutenant of his, and she was quite pretty- not as pretty as Gracia- but it wasn't fair of him to compare anyone to his beautiful wife.

So, maybe…

* * *

Meeting Edward and Alphonse Elric, Hughes felt a sense of responsibility towards the two; he tried his best to take care of them when he could.

Gracia was a big help in that department, her calm, understanding nature helped the two feel a bit more comfortable around them.

Seeing the loneliness the two evidently experienced, having lost their family, Hughes did his best to make them feel a part of his.

He promised himself that he would never leave his family behind, he wouldn't leave Elicia without a father, and he wouldn't leave Gracia without a husband. And he would do his best to get those two boys back to normal, so that they can find someone to be happy with, someone to give them reason to move on from their past mistakes, like what Gracia and Elicia did for him.

* * *

It was a large party, Gracia and Maes stood proudly behind their daughter as she blew out the candles on her birthday- four of them.

Hughes was the proud father of the occasion.

There was a bit of a mishap when some boys tried to play with his little girl, arguing with each other over who would get to, over who Elicia wanted to play with, but he sorted _them_ out quickly.

He spoke with a childhood friend of Ed and Al, a pretty blonde called Winry, as he spoke to her and saw the worry she felt for the two, the hurt at them not telling her when they were in trouble, Hughes realised that the boys had a family.

He decided that he would work extra hard to help them, so that they could go back home and see that for themselves.

* * *

Hughes lay in the telephone booth, the phone hanging off its receiver, he could see his blood had reached the photo of them, of his family, and he felt regret. He hadn't been able to tell Roy what he had discovered, he hadn't been able to help those boys.

And he had broken his promise, his vow to himself that he would never leave those he cared about behind.

"Elicia… Gracia… I'm… sorry…" he whispered, and he was, completely.

Gracia would cry, and he hated to make her cry, Elicia wouldn't understand, she would miss him and ask when he was coming home, he hated to disappoint her.

Gracia would have to raise Elicia on his own, and he was sorry that she would have to, and he wished that he had been able to watch his little girl grow up.

He exhaled the last of the breath left in him, his eyes slid shut.

He was leaving them all behind, and he wanted desperately to tell them how sorry he was to do that.

Roy, his best friend, the man he had done everything he could do, to support.

Ed and Al, those two boys he had wanted so badly to help, he had felt responsible for.

And Gracia and Elicia, one, the proof that he could love and be loved in return, that he had a right to; the other the reminder that he could do more, could create more than just sadness and misery.

People had never seemed to really understand why he was so proud of them.

It was a secret he'd take to his grave.

* * *

**La la la... I'm not a nice person**

**XD**


	9. LingFan Romance: Little Bird

**I don't own FMAB**

* * *

**LingFan Romance:**

Ling was strolling in the gardens, enjoying the peaceful day, he knew that soon, he'd have to return to his stuffy home, he was leaving soon, to search for the secret to immortality in the nearby kingdom Amestris, he would have to cross the desert, and he wanted to pass through the ruins of Xerxes on the way; he hoped to get some hints from the place.

After all, the legendary golden being who had passed through Xing teaching them their alkahestry, had been believed to be from there.

"My Lord!" the dual cries for him caused the teen to turn and groan, his two bodyguard- Fuu and his granddaughter Lan Fan- were set on following him everywhere, between the two of them, the young prince barely got any time to himself.

The two had become even more irritating as of late; concern for the upcoming trip causing them to stick by him even closer, _'do they think I'm just going to try and leave without them?'_ he wondered irritably, before rethinking that, _'well, I suppose that- if given the chance- I would so… I can't begrudge them for being careful and trying to do their jobs.'_

He heard the girl Lan Fan calling out his name again, he had to admit, she had a rather pretty voice, and she was very good at her job, despite being only around his age.

The main problem was, she tended to take her job a little too seriously, he wouldn't have minded if- once in a while- she would relax and sit down to talk to him. He had seen her without her mask once, and he couldn't help wishing for another chance to see her under more normal circumstances- it somehow upset him to think she was only following him in such a dedicated manner because it was her job.

But that was how it was.

He heard a bird call and he glanced over to see a beautifully coloured bird, not very big but with a large plumage, a bit like a miniature peacock. It was standing on a branch of one of the cherry blossom trees, at the moment, its branches were bare, nothing growing yet. Though in spring when all of the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom, it was truly a magnificent sight to behold.

Ling felt himself overcome with a sudden drowsiness, and he yawned, seating himself on the grassy floor and gazing at the bird with sleepy eyes. The sun shone through the trees leaving him warm and contented, if a little hungry.

Maybe he wasn't being cautious enough, but he was inside his own clan's home, he was going to be leaving soon and he would have to be on his toes at all times on his quest for immortality, he should take the use this opportunity to rest and not be so worried for once. One must take a chance to relax and enjoy the nature sometimes, he decided.

He gazed at the bird, watching it chirp away; with a small smile, he reached out a hand towards it, slowly. Alarmed, it hopped away a few steps, but Ling stilled his hand to show it that he wouldn't pursue, instead, he began whispering softly to the pretty thing, "here, come here, beautiful, it's okay, you can trust me," he repeated it over and over like some form of a mantra.

The bird looked at him curiously, cocking its head to one side, before hopping from branch to branch, down, closer to where he sat. it stopped on one of the lower branches, looking down on him, he smiled gently- despite the knowledge that it wouldn't understand the gesture- and slowly stood up, his hand raising with the rest of him, trembling slightly with the effort of keeping it completely still.

Once more, the bird gave a startled 'cheep' and flew away to a further branch, but once standing, Ling remained still, his hand in the air, waiting.

Sure enough, it didn't take long before the bird moved towards him again, curious, but still cautious.

Ling bit his lip, silently willing the bird to come closer, making soothing sounds to reassure it; and it did come closer. Gradually shedding its caution, allowing its curiosity to take hold, it hopped through the branches towards Ling once more, until it was resting on that same branch just above him. If Ling wished it, he could have straightened his arm and petted the silly thing, but he kept himself still, he would have a better chance if he just let it come to him.

There was somewhere behind him, and Ling, so focused on the bird, didn't notice the malevolence that the cause emitted. Assuming it to be Lan Fan or Fuu, he whispered quietly, "don't startle the bird."

There was another rustle, an odd prickling sensation overcame Ling briefly, and the bird startled, squawking indignantly, it hopped away a few branches before flying off completely.

Ling frowned, disappointed, he had been so close, he turned to the cause of the bird's flying away fully intending to scold the person; that was when he realised.

The prickling sensation he had felt was the intended harm radiating off the man before him, because that was surely what the man meant him. He was wearing the colours of another clan, his face was covered.

Ling didn't have a weapon on him; he didn't get a chance to dodge either as the man brought his fist down on the side of the boy's face. Ling's vision blurred and he stumbled, falling backwards, he realised bleakly that this person must be a well-trained assassin, sent after him, had he been more alert he would have had no problem with the man, but having succumbed to the tranquillity of his surroundings, he had left himself open to attack.

The man drew his sword, clearly realising that Ling was too dazed to move anytime soon, he paused for a moment to look down at his handiwork, "I was expecting more of a challenge," he told the boy in a soft, rumbling voice. Blood trickled down the side of Ling's head as he gazed blearily up at the man, he could just make out the man raising his sword, before his eyes closed of their own will.

The last thing he heard was a bellow of rage coming from the man, and a familiar voice crying out in panic, "My Lord!"

* * *

Ling woke to find himself propped up against the cherry blossom, he looked up and notice with dull amusement that the bird was back, and peering at him curiously.

"My Lord," he turned to see Lan Fan kneeling next to him, she held a cloth in her hand and had taken her mask off, no doubt to check the wound in his head better. She dabbed at it, "are you okay? You were only out for a minute or so, but still," Ling had a terrible, headache, his whole head pounded and throbbed, he winced slightly, then smiled, "I'm so flattered to see you concerned for my well-being," he told the girl in a teasing tone.

Since her mask wasn't on, Ling was able to see all-to-clearly the blush the spread across her cheeks, before she could explain her actions- it was just her job, Ling knew that- he added, "And yes, I'm fine thank you, I'm more resistant than that." Back on a familiar, safe topic, Lan Fan frowned, "that may be so my Lord, but how did he manage to catch you out like that anyway?"

Ling grinned sheepishly, "uh… I was a bit distracted, I let down my guard," she frowned, "you know better than that," she admonished the teen. Ling smiled again then looked around- slowly though, no point worsening his head ache- before noticing something, "where's Fuu?" Lan Fan looked around before turning back to Ling, "he went to go check to see if that assassin had come alone or had bought accomplices," she told him softly.

She fell silent after that, dabbing at the blood on the side of his head, she did this for so long that Ling couldn't help but that it must have been gone by then. Lan Fan finally finished, wrapping it up with a soft, "better to be safe than sorry," she placed the bloody cloth into her pocket then knelt over and picked up her mask, placing it over her face once more.

Ling felt somewhat disappointed, he would have liked to look at her some more, her face of concentration as she cleaned his wound properly. He was struck by the sudden, surprising thought that she was somewhat like the bird, you had to let her come to you of her own accord. If you tried to move to quickly, she would get frightened and back off completely.

Ling thought on this for a few moments before deciding to maybe reach his hand out to her a little, "you're very dedicated to your work, Lan Fan, thank you."

Lan Fan stilled, facing towards the trees, away from him; ling wondered what he had said, confused, he saw Lan Fan exhale she fidgeted awkwardly before replying in a voice soft that Ling almost wasn't certain she had even spoken,

"I don't protect you because it's my duty."

Ling's eyes widened, "what do you... what are you trying to say?" she turned towards him, he could see the hesitation in her eyes, he could see as she tried to gather the courage to say something, Ling felt his heart quicken in his chest and he leaned forward, "my Lord, I-" "there don't seem to be any more rival clan members in the nearby vicinity," the two jumped and glanced over to where Fuu had suddenly appeared, before looking away guiltily as though they had been doing something they shouldn't have.

Fuu walked over to Ling and knelt down beside him, checking the bandage on his head, "you mustn't run off like that again, understood, my Lord?" Ling frowned, he considered Fuu a good friend, a father-like figure to him, as well as a bodyguard, but right now, he couldn't help but feel irritated with the elderly man. Whatever Lan Fan had been about to say... he really had wanted to hear it. He glanced at her but she refused to meet his eyes. Ling sighed.

The little bird had been frightened away.

* * *

**Hur hur...**

**LingFan**

**3**


	10. EdWin Romance: Accidental Confession

**This is my third EdWin one-shot (heehee) there's just so many things one can do with this pairing.**

**Also, my friend Bec mentioned one time how Ed and Winry spent two years together in Resembool knowing how they felt and not doing anything about it, well, he was kinda proposing to her at the train, so... it's possible that they had kinda been dating for a bit before that, y'know?**

**At least, I'd like to think that's what happened.**

**Anyway, enjoy the EdWin**

**I don't own the characters, the anime or the shipping**

* * *

**EdWin Romance:**

It had been four weeks since the Promised Day, Ed and Al were slowly getting used to their new circumstances, and they were both enjoying being able to spend time back in Resembool again.

"It's so strange, all the feeling and smells and sounds and sensations, it's all just so overwhelming!" Ed chuckled at his younger brother's enthusiasm, "Al, you've been saying the exact same thing over and over, ever since we got back to Resembool." Al crossed his arms stubbornly, "well it's true."

Ed sighed, shaking his head good-naturedly, inwardly amused and delighted by his brother's antics; he couldn't even begin to explain how happy he was to have finally gotten his brother's body back for him and he sincerely hoped that Al would be able to live a more normal- and happy- lifestyle.

Al clearly wasn't satisfied letting the topic drop, "what about you? Don't tell me you're used to the changes already?" Ed shrugged, "not really I guess, for one, I can't shake the feeling that we have somewhere to be, almost like we're not meant to be staying in the one place so long, though I know that's silly, old habits die hard, I suppose. Though I am happy and content here, that's for sure, being able to relax, not worry about any evil scheme or corruption or legends or anything like that, though I still find myself sometimes on edge, it's hard to just put down my guard completely I guess.

"It's great having my arm back, the automail was sometimes a bit much to handle, so I missed my regular limbs. Not to mention, the biggest shock is still the loss of my alchemy, it makes some things harder I guess, and sometimes it's weird that I'll never be able to transmute something again, but that's just the price I had to pay I guess."

At this, Al looked contrite, glancing away from Ed and shuffling his feet a little guiltily, noticing, Ed hurried to reassure the boy, "oh! I don't mind, you know, it's different, but not having alchemy is, in its own way, relaxing. Besides, alchemy doesn't solve everything, and as I learnt, it's foolish to rely on it for everything, then be disappointed when it doesn't help you. Besides, now I'm learning to do things the 'old-fashioned way' I'm handy with my hands in a completely different manner now!" he grinned at his brother.

Al didn't look appeased, instead, glancing at Ed's automail leg and sighing heavily, Ed sighed too, for a different reason, "look Al, I don't mind not getting my leg back either, you know. Personally, I think it serves as a good reminder of what happened, of the lessons we learned together, don't you?" He grinned mischievously, "Besides, I don't think Winry would give me the time of day if I didn't still have at least _one_ automail limb for her to work on."

Al gazed at his brother for some time before grinning, "I'm sure you would be incredibly disappointed if Winry lost interest in you, Brother." Ed started, partly wondering at the sudden subject change he stared at Al who was smiling deviously before leaning against the kitchen table, faking nonchalance, "I-I'm not sure I know what you mean by that, Al," he told the boy who simply smiled wider.

"What indeed, Brother?" Ed raised an eyebrow at Al, since when was the younger teasing the older? He wondered to himself privately.

Al leaned against the bench, looking at Ed curiously, "you do like her though, don't you, Brother?" Ed felt a blush rise to his cheeks and he cleared his throat noncommittally, "like who?" he asked, feigning ignorance and low interest. Al simply smiled, not fooled for a moment, "you know who I mean, Win…" he trailed off, looking at something behind his big brother, before glancing back at the blonde, eyes widening.

Ed didn't notice the pause, fidgeting uncomfortably, "okay, Al, I mean, I suppose it's okay to tell you, since I know you won't tell anyone else," he paused, closing his eyes as he fortified his resolve, after all, the boy had already realised, Ed knew of his feelings for that Mei girl, so it was only fair that he told him about _his_ feelings, right?"

He didn't notice Al's attempt to discreetly signal him to be silent, nor did he notice the growing panic in the boy's eyes, "about Winry, I… like her… a lot, rather, _like_ isn't a specific enough term, I… love her," he turned to Al, "I'm in love with Winry."

Because he was now looking at his younger brother, Ed realised that Al wasn't actually even looking at him anymore; rather, he was looking _behind_ him. Dread settled in the bottom of his stomach and he turned apprehensively, praying that it wouldn't be, but just _knowing_ that it would.

And sure enough, there, with her hand on the doorknob, a look of absolute shock on her face- was Winry.

* * *

Pinako Rockbell was sitting on the back porch, smoking her pipe and staring thoughtfully off into the distance. She heard a scream come from the kitchen and turned to Den, "that sounded like Ed," she sighed, shaking her head, "kids are so noisy these days," she muttered before inhaling once more from her pipe.

* * *

Winry stared at Ed, _'okay, I can understand him being surprised, especially after saying something like that, but he didn't have to scream,'_ she thought- well, part of her thought, most of her was trying to understand what he had said prior to his screaming and jumping away from the kitchen table to the other side of the room, leaving him standing next to the door out to the front porch.

She opened her mouth to say something, then stopped, what could she say? A sudden unexpected confession, but was it actually a confession? She hadn't heard the entire conversation, maybe they were talking about sisterly love? Her heart constricted painfully, she didn't want to believe that that was it.

She glanced at the blonde again, he looked as though he were about to have some kind of seizure, his whole face was red and panic was clearly displayed as one of the prime emotions, _'judging by that reaction, he wasn't talking about brotherly affection'_ she felt her hope rise.

She stepped towards the older Elric brother, "Well, sorry to just walk off, but I better go check up on mum and dad's grave **(1)** I haven't visited them in ages, they probably need some maintenance," he shot them all a grin- that was clearly forced- before practically running out of the room," "Ah! Edward!" Winry called after him, raising a hand, he didn't reply, and had vanished within a minute.

She turned to Al who was staring at the ground guiltily, clearly he hadn't intended for Winry to hear that until Ed had been ready to tell her, "Al?" she said softly. He looked up hesitantly, meeting her eyes, they both sighed, Ed had only been to his parents' grave yesterday.

* * *

Ed was well down the path before he stopped to think rationally… well… it wasn't exactly rationally, but with a bit more foresight, _'I can't go to their graves in case one of them decides to come after me…'_ he thought for a moment, _'ah! I know!'_ he ran off again.

He refused to think about what would happen when he would have to return, maybe he could go live out the duration of his life in Xing? That squinty-eyed prince sure as hell owed him for all the trouble the guy caused him when he came to Amestris. He shot that option down almost as soon as he thought of it, there was no way he was going to spend the rest of his life putting up with him, or that bodyguard of his that seemed to have it in for Ed, and as fond as Al may be of her, Ed _was not_ going to be able to up with that little Xingese girl, Mei and her panda, they were beyond intolerable.

The ruins of his old home came into view, _'I can stay here for a little bit at least'_ he decided _'at least until I can figure out a way to explain things to Winry.'_

* * *

Ed was simply gazing off into the distance, he knew that he should be thinking of some kind of explanation for Winry, but his mind came up with absolutely nothing, and all he could think about was what Winry would do when she found him.

He doubted that he would walk away from that confrontation unharmed, but in truth, he could handle being beaten up with her wrench, _'what I won't be able to handle is if she refuses me, I don't think I could bear to lose her.'_

He heard footsteps crunching on the dirt and gravel path behind him and turned to see Winry now standing there, gazing at him passively.

He involuntarily drew in a sharp breath, before looking away; he could hear her walking up behind him, but he stayed still, it was better to just get it over with he decided, putting it off would do nothing to change the end result.

Winry sat on the ground next to him, and he glanced at her, her face was expressionless, giving nothing away, and yet, he couldn't help but thinking, despite the completely inappropriate timing, how pretty she was- her hair seemed just perfect for running his fingers through, her eyes were the type you could lose yourself in, her lips seemed to be meant for him to kiss, and her muscular, yet slender frame seemed just the right size for him to wrap his arms around in an embrace.

"You know," she spoke softly, breaking Ed out of his fantasies, he blushed and looked away again, "there's this boy I like," Ed's eyes widened, was she _really_ telling him this? Did she not understand what she had heard? Did she not realise how much it would hurt for her to tell him something like this?

Regardless of Ed's lack of reaction, the young woman continued on determinedly, "he's got golden hair and eyes; I've always secretly thought those eyes of his to be absolutely beautiful. He's really quite short, but he _has_ started to grow a little lately, though he has always been incredibly touchy about his height. I always thought it was cute how irritated he got with people teasing him about that sort of thing, he didn't hesitate to get angry at even incredibly important people, like members high up in the military, or if he was in a serious situation, he'd still react in that way, and he _has_ been in situations like that, and met many important people like that, because he was always a bit of an important person, a lot of people respected and admired him. He's stubborn, has a bit of a short temper, and sometimes isn't the most tactful person. He absolutely _hates_ milk, refuses to drink it," at this she gave a small, fond laugh, "he has always been incredibly dedicated to the people he cares about, refusing to desert others. Even when fighting, he had a rule to not kill, even if the person he had been fighting had been trying to kill _him_. He has a tendency to blame himself for things that aren't his fault, and takes responsibility for people, always doing his best to help them. He made a big sacrifice to get his little brother back to normal, and had dedicated many years of his life, giving up his childhood to get to that point." She leaned back, hands wrapped around one knee, staring up at the sky with a small blush on her cheeks, by this point, Ed was staring at her in disbelief, and hesitant hope, yet she continued determinedly, "I didn't get to see much of him for some time, he only came back to visit with his brother, when he needed repair for his automail, and he rarely stayed long when he _did_ come to visit. Recently, he's fought against homunculi, made friends with a Xingese prince and princess, and… well… he saved Amestris, and he saved me, multiple times."

At those last words she turned to Ed, hesitantly reaching forward and taking his hand, "I like him a lot, rather, _like_ isn't specific enough, I _love_ him," Ed smiled slightly at her using his words, "I'm in love with Edward Elric, former Fullmetal Alchemist, saviour of Amestris," Ed blushed slightly at her words, "I didn't really do all of that by myself," he whispered, before leaning forward and hesitantly kissing her, effectively stopping the girl from rebuking his statement.

They stayed like that for some moments, holding hands and smiling at each other, before something Winry said came back to him, Ed frowned before turning to the girl in indignation, "Winry! How many times have I told you?

"I'm not short!"

* * *

**(1) Heehee, yes, Ed refers to Hohenheim as dad now (at least, in my world of head canons he does), isn't it sweet? ^.^**


	11. ShesKain Romance: What Could Never Be

**Okay... I actually meant to make it where they get together and have a happy ending and stuff but... then this happened so... sorry, it was supposed to be a happy ending**

**I don't own FMAB or FMA**

* * *

**Fuery x Sheska Romance:**

Sheska was walking along the hall with several books piled high in her arms; they kept on tipping one way then the other ad Sheska was terrified that they would fall.

As it was, they were piled high enough that she couldn't see where she was going, she had carefully feel out every step she took, she sighed, "I still have a ways to go yet," she muttered to herself, deciding to pick up the speed a little.

* * *

Fuery was heading up the stairs; he had been sent off on an errand by Havoc and told to come back as quickly as possible.

He ran up them as fast as he could, when he reached the last flight of stairs he was greeted by the sight of a stack of books piled high enough to reach the ceiling, he noticed a pair of legs sticking out from underneath, trembling with the effort of holding the weight of the pile of books.

Right before his horrified eyes, the person slipped on the steps, _'it was bound to happen'_ some small part of Fuery's mind thought, _'high-heels, an endless flight of steps, a massive pile of books, it was a disaster waiting to happen'_ of course, only a small part of his mind was thinking this, as the rest of it was preoccupied with the pile of books which had leaned backwards, then forwards too far at the person's slip, resulting in the entire pile falling forwards- followed closely behind by the person carrying the books- heading straight to him.

Fuery managed a somewhat strangled yelp before it crashed into him, knocking him down the few steps he had managed to get up for the last flight. He managed to stop himself tumbling down the other flights of stairs, but only just.

* * *

Sheska's arms hurt, her legs did too to be honest, rather, she ached all over from that tumble, and she was trembling from the shock. With effort, she sat up, rubbing at a quickly forming lump on her head as she did. She looked around to see- to her horror- the books she had struggled so hard to carry, now strewn all over the stairs, some had even fell several flight below, she groaned as she thought of the major task she had ahead of her, collecting all these books.

She was answered by another groan and realised with a start that she had, in fact, fallen on top of someone, she supposed vaguely, that that was why she hadn't been hurt worse than she was. She scrambled back off him- for it was indeed a him, a young man with dark hair and sweet face that seemed to be currently scrunched up in pain.

Sheska panicked, "oh no, what if he's mortally injured, this is terrible! What do I do! I don't know any first aid, oh! I did read a bit about it in a book one time maybe I could-" she was cut off as the man groaned and cautiously sat up, from the looks of him he was mostly unharmed, so it was okay, but _'oh dear, I'm going to be in __**so**__ much trouble now!'_

* * *

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm really very sorry!" Fuery startled, looking at the distraught brunette who was bowed down- despite her seated position- in front of him. He stared at the girl in surprise, had she been the one carrying the books? She didn't look strong enough to do that, but there was no one else around, so after a moment's deliberation Fuery decided that, yes, it must have been her.

Realising that she was still bowed in front of him muttering apologies, Fuery smiled, "what are you apologising for?" she looked up at him then, and Fuery realised with a start that she was really quite pretty, her eyes were wide and uncertain behind their glassed and she looked absolutely distraught, but despite that, she still seemed absolutely perfect to him. Fuery wondered at his sudden thoughts, shaking them away quickly, "it's my fault you got hurt," the girl was saying, she bowed again, "I'm very sorry!"

Fuery smiled, his back hurt a little, that was sure, and he knew he'd have a few bumps, but all in all, he'd been fairly lucky, he hadn't been hurt too badly. He stood up, dusting himself off, he offered a hand to the girl, "I'm fine, thanks, are you okay?"

* * *

For some reason, when the young man offered his hand to her, Sheska was reminded startlingly of the knights in some of the stories she had met, that one act of his seemed so chivalrous to her. Her heart pounded in her chest and she blushed as she took his hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet. She let go of his hand quickly, worried that she would seem clingy if she held on to long, then she began to worry if she had let go too quickly and offended. She glanced at him, saw the gentle, friendly smile and relaxed, smiling shyly back, "I'm Fuery," he told the brunette, "I'm Sheska," she replied with a smile.

The raven looked around the staircase, surveying the damage, "I think you could use some help with all of these, am I right?" Sheska began to deny it, not wanting to waste the other's time, but Fuery simply smiled and started to pick up the books. After a moment, Sheska smiled and started doing the same.

* * *

"What are all these books for?" Fuery asked as he helped Sheska carry them down the hallway, she smiled, "Mister Hughes hired me to rewrite all of the military files that were in the library when it burnt down, I have a photographic memory and I really love reading. I'd come across them during my time working as a library so I read them and remembered everything said. I have to write them up again word for word, that's my job," Fuery stared at her in amazement, "wow," he breathed, "that's an _amazing_ talent, you're incredible," Sheska blushed, "oh… I'm not really," she protested.

* * *

Fuery was walking past Major Hughes' office, he was startled when he heard the man shout out suddenly, "and Sheska you're fired!" followed by a surprised exclamation. Fuery stopped as he watched the man running out of the office, he frowned, _'what was that all about?'_ he wondered. He peered into the office to see Sheska staring into space, clearly surprised, he was tempted to go in and comfort her, but surely she would have no desire to talk to him, right? They didn't even know each other very well, and if he did, he'd have to admit to eavesdropping, unintentional or not.

After a moment's hesitation he moved on, maybe he could ask Major Hughes tomorrow why he had fired the girl, she had seemed really quite competent and nice, as well as a hard-worker, there surely couldn't have been any good reason why he _should_ fire the girl, right?

* * *

Fuery stood silently, watching as the casket was lowered into the ground, he bit his fist to stop himself from whimpering when Hughes' daughter began loudly asking why they were burying daddy, saying that he had work to do and "mummy, don't let them bury daddy!"

He glanced over and saw the girl, Sheska, standing in formal clothes, sobbing freely, he wanted to go and comfort her. He felt that urge to protect the girl rise up in his chest, but when he had walked away the other day, it had placed a rift between the two of them, whether Sheska was aware of it or not.

He turned away from the girl, unable to bear the sight of her heartbroken face; thoughts raced through his mind as to what he could have done to prevent this. If he had gone after Major Hughes straight away, maybe he would been able to save him from whoever had killed him.

He felt like his heart was breaking in two, the death of a friend, and the death of something that could never have been.

Tears ran down his cheeks now unchecked, he didn't bother to wipe them away, but he did wonder who he was crying for, Hughes, or himself.

* * *

**I seem to enjoy writing about Hughes' death, don't know why (okay, not really, but I seem to mention it a lot, most of the time it isn't even intentional, it just gets incorporated in)**


	12. HavBec Romance: Parallel Dates

**I think Rebecca x Havoc are just the perfect pair for each other so I made this!**

**^.^**

**I don't own FMAB**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Rebecca x Havoc Romance:**

Rebecca smiled at the man across the table from her, he glanced at her and smiled back, the tall brunette frowned at the seemingly uninterested expression on the man's face. They sat together eating quietly for some time, Rebecca was _not_ enjoying this date, and she had really hoped that he would be the one. The perfect man for her.

It seemed not.

So when she caught him staring at a pretty red-head, she sighed and got to her feet, "thanks for the meal and I'm sorry to cut this date short, but just don't see this working," she told the man bluntly. He didn't even bother to protest as she walked out of the restaurant.

* * *

Havoc smiled charmingly at the woman across the table from him, she glanced at him and smiled back, the blonde was disappointed by the lack of interest on the girl's face. She had really been ever so pretty, but when he spoke, she didn't bother to listen, she didn't even seem to want to be there with him.

All in all, it was a rather big disappointment for him.

Halfway through the meal, the girl turned to him, leaning on an elbow across the table, looking at him intently, Havoc wondered at the sudden attitude change, "so," she began, "I hear you know the Flame Alchemist, that you work with him," she smiled endearingly at him.

Havoc frowned, "cheque please!" he called, raising a hand and turning the waiter, signalling him over to them.

* * *

Rebecca walked down the street, furious with how her date had turned out, she checked the time and sighed irritably, it wasn't even that late! Only a few minutes past six in the afternoon.

She huffed angrily, silently cursing all men to hell and back again, silently claiming that if she never met another person of the opposite gender, it would be too soon.

* * *

Havoc walked down the street, furious with how his date had turned out, damn that Roy! Because of him, his date had been possibly the worst in all history! He checked the time, it hadn't even lasted long! It was only a few minutes past six in the afternoon.

He huffed irritably, silently cursing all women to hell and back again, silently claiming that if he never met another person of the opposite gender, it would be too soon.

* * *

Rebecca rounded the corner and bumped into someone, she saw to her surprise that it was Havoc, and he was looking incredibly irritable.

* * *

Havoc rounded the corner and bumped into someone, he saw to his surprise that it was Rebecca and she was looking absolutely furious.

* * *

The two sat awkwardly at the dining table, having discovered the other's issue, both had taken reasonable amusement in the parallelism of their night. Deciding to finish the meal that had been cut short for both of them, due to discourteous dates they had walked to a nearby diner and gotten a table.

Seeing an understanding listener in the other, both Rebecca and Havoc decided to rant about their dates during the meal.

"He didn't even listen to me when I spoke!"

"She wasn't the least bit interested in what I had to say!"

"I saw him eying off some other woman, in the middle of our meal!"

"She tried to get me to hook her up with the Colonel!"

The listeners nearby sighed in reluctant acceptance, as they realised that their meal wasn't going to be a quiet one.

* * *

The two found that they couldn't eat and complain at the same time, so instead they picked up the knives and forks and began to each, enjoying the other's company. After some time, they began to talk about more normal things, about halfway through one of their conversations, Havoc realised with a start that he was enjoying himself talking to Rebecca, more than he ever usually enjoyed himself when in a conversation with his date, _'not that this is a date,'_ he hastily amended mentally. For Rebecca's part, the brunette was pleased to see the Havoc actually listened to her when she spoke, as a result, she found herself enjoying the time spent with him, more than she spent with any other date, _'not that this is a date,'_ she hastily amended mentally.

* * *

They finished their meal and stayed for a few minutes longer, oddly reluctant to part ways, finally, Havoc spoke, "how about I walk you home, Rebecca?" he grinned, "it wouldn't do to let a lady walk home all on her lonesome at night," at this, Rebecca rolled her eyes, but she did so with a smile. And she didn't refuse his offer.

* * *

The walk seemed all too short to the pair, as they strode through the cark streets together, talking about things of little consequence, simply enjoying the privilege of being able to talk to someone who listened fully, didn't have any ulterior motives, and was simply there for the pleasure of the other person's company.

Havoc stood in front Rebecca's door, she looked at him hesitantly, clearly unsure as to what to do now. It hadn't been meant as a date, but now, with Havoc standing on her doorstep, she realised that despite the fact that it hadn't been _intentional_, what they had done, more or less qualified as a date.

For some reason, that thought didn't upset her like she thought it would.

It was Havoc, once again, who spoke up first, "well, I sincerely hope that your next date is much better," he told the brunette with a half-smile, ignoring the inner thought that that wasn't what she wanted to hear, Rebecca smiled, "same for you, Havoc," she sighed, "why is it so hard to find Mister Right?" she wondered aloud. Havoc nodded, "I had had such high hopes for tonight's date, she seemed like such a caring girl, I could imagine myself setting up a life with her," "but of course, there are so many guys out there who have no intention of settling down," Havoc nodded, leaning back on one foot, "some women just seem to be all about 'having fun', I want someone I can spend the rest of my life with."

The two trailed off as the other's words sank in, staring at each other in surprise at their similar wishes for a relationship. Rebecca smiled tentatively and havoc returned that smile, "say, Rebecca…" the brunette nodded, motioning for him to continue when he trailed off uncertainly, Havoc stood up straight, "I would be honoured if you would decide to go on a date with me," he said swiftly, a blush forming on his cheeks." Rebecca grinned, "I'd love to, Havoc."

* * *

**Hee hee... those two would be cute together**

**3**

**So that's the end of my chapter spam, hope you like it!**


	13. Hughes Family: Family Dinners

**Okay! I haven't uploaded for a bit for this, though to be honest, I haven't really gotten any requests, is anyone still reading these? I want to knoooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooow!**

**Okay, got that out of my system, but seriously, you guys know I do any kind of pairing right? And it doesn't have to be just romantic, it could be friendship, or family like this one.**

**:)**

**Uh... this is put down as another Hughes family, but it's more...Hughes x Roy bromance, and Hughes x Ed x Al family... there's also a little mention of Royai because I just can't help myself :3**

**There is a ****_lot_**** of mentioning of 'Another Man's Battlefield' if you haven't watched it, you should, it's an FMAB OVA, you'll understand a lot more of the references in this.**

**Those boys really love their spinach quiche ^.^**

**This doesn't really have any spoilers in it, but if you know what happens to Hughes, you will laugh.**

**Um... I think that's about it, Hughes is a wonderful daddy and...**

**I don't own him or the rest of the FMA or FMAB series DX**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Hughes Family:**

Ed and Al had gone off on another search for the philosopher's stone; they had already been gone for over three weeks, as always, whenever those two went off on some mission, Gracia worried. Hughes did his best to reassure her, saying that Ed was a state alchemist, he would be fine, but secretly, he too worried about them, for all their talent, for all their experience and status, Edward and Alphonse Elric were still kids. They didn't deserve this kind of life.

So whenever they were in Central, Hughes was always sure to invite them over to have dinner with him and his family, he knew it wasn't as helpful as presenting the two with a philosopher's stone, or maybe a new, easier way to get their bodies back to normal, but it was something he thought was important. He wanted them to understand that they were part of his family, he would do whatever he could to help them, and they could always ask him for help.

"Honey, the Lieutenant Colonel's here!" Hughes looked up at the sound of Gracia's voice, he grinned and picked Elicia up, walking out of the living room to see Roy standing in the hallway exchanging pleasantries with his wife, "Roy!" he called out, grinning, walking over and giving Gracia a kiss on the cheek and Roy a slap on the back, his grin widened as he hugged Elicia tighter, "look at my darling daughter, isn't she just the cutest thing! Look how fast she's growing up!" Roy sighed, he was used to the man's antics, but he still didn't enjoy them, "yeah, soon she'll be getting married herself," Hughes stiffened, a distraught, then evil look came over the man's face, Elicia looked up at her father confused, "daddy? What's wong?" he looked down at the girl and smiled, "nothing sweetie, don't you worry at all, I'll keep all those punk kids away from you, _no boy's ever gonna hurt my little girl!_"

Gracia and Roy sighed at the man's declaration, _'I can't wait to see how he handles her teen years'_ the raven haired man thought to himself amusedly.

* * *

Roy and Hughes had been friends since their years in the military academy, starting out first as rivals, their relationship changed to unexpected friendship upon defending an Ishvalan man who had also joined the military in the hopes of changing other's views of his people.

Hughes smiled at the memory, his smile dimmed slightly as other- more painful memories- came through, those times, and the challenges and enjoyments and successes would be forever tainted by what had happened in Ishval. He sighed, before banishing all thoughts from his mind, they were having spinach quiche for dinner, a food that both Hughes and Roy were fond of, because of the two men's large appetites, the four managed to get through the entire thing, until there was only one slice left.

Roy reached forward to take it, only to have Hughes snatch at the last minute, he looked up in surprise at Hughes' smug face, "sorry, it's just, spinach quiche _is_ my favourite after all," Roy sighed, rolling his eyes and smiling at the reminder those words had served, Gracia wacked Hughes lightly on the arm, "the Lieutenant Colonel is our guest, don't be so rude," Hughes merely smiled and took a bite out of the slice.

Gracia sighed and got up to check on the apple pie that was cooling, a Hughes finished the final slice, a blissful look spread across his face, "Gracia's cooking is the best there is, I could die happy now!"

"I should hope not," he turned to see Gracia standing once more at the doorway, arms crossed, she smiled, "you're not going anywhere, anytime soon," Hughes got to his feet and strode over to the woman, hugging her, "don't you worry at all Gracia, I promise you, we'll be growing old and wrinkly, together."

Roy smiled at their show of obvious affection, _'I suppose it would be nice to have someone I can be like that with'_ he thought to himself somewhat wistfully, there was someone he loved, but for now, being with her was impossible.

"You really need to find yourself a wife, Roy," the Flame Alchemist was startled out of his thoughts to see Hughes standing there, looking at him with a foolish expression, he rolled his eyes, "and who do you suggest, Hughes?" he ground out, Hughes looked thoughtful for a moment before walking over and nudging Roy in a conspiring manner, "that first lieutenant of yours is rather-" Hughes stopped short at the look Roy shot at him and he stood up again, "uh… clearly not a dinner conversation," he said before cheerfully going onto ask Gracia if the pie was cool enough to eat.

Roy sighed, _'don't tempt me like that, Hughes, to be with her… it can't happen just yet'_.

* * *

The next day Ed and Al arrived home, Ed's automail arm had once again, been destroyed, other than that, it seemed neither of the two boys had attained any serious injury. After passing this onto Gracia, the gentle woman sighed in relief, "that's good then," she told Hughes with a smile, "why don't you invite those two over for dinner tonight, I think Elicia has been missing them," at those words, Elicia looked up from her drawing with quizzical look on her face, "huh? Is big bwudder and little bwudder coming to pway?" she asked hopefully.

Hughes smiled, "well, I'll have to ask them first but, hopefully," at the delighted smile on Elicia's face, Hughes couldn't help himself, he reached over and grabbed the camera that he always kept close by, off the dining table and took a photo of the little girl, before running over and hugging her, "oh! My little girl is so cute!" he cried out happily, Elicia giggled, "daddy, that tickles!" she told him as he rubbed his face against her affectionately, Gracia smiled as Hughes began tickling the girl with an 'oh really? Well what about this?' despite how childish she knew it to be, she couldn't help but hope that maybe things would get to stay like this forever.

* * *

Ed sighed when Hughes appeared cheerfully in front of him and his brother, "no, we don't want to see any pictures of your 'darling' daughter," he told the man in a monotone voice, guessing what he was going to say next, the blonde added quickly, "nor any more pictures of your 'gorgeous' wife," Hughes grinned, "just this one picture," he told the two before shoving a picture of a smiling Elicia looking up from her drawing into both their faces, "know when I took this?" he asked the two, silence was his only answer.

"When I told Elicia that her two big brothers might be coming for dinner this afternoon," Ed frowned, he knew immediately that Hughes was talking about him and Al, "and why were we not informed before now? I've called up Winry, but she hasn't arrived yet, I'd be attending this with one arm," Hughes made a dismissive gesture, "I'm well aware of that, besides, Gracia is making stew for dinner and I promise the only milk present will be in that," Ed looked up at Al, he could tell that his younger brother wanted to go.

He sighed, _'how does he expect me to answer after showing me a picture of Elicia smiling so happily for a reason like __**that**__?'_ he put on a nonchalant voice, "well, I suppose the stew is more than enough reason to come," he told the man airily. Hughes grinned, "great, let's go," and without another word said he grabbed hold of Ed and began dragging him off home, after a few steps he paused and turned back to Al, "come on, Elicia's been looking forward to playing with you, she's really missed you both," he knew he didn't have to worry about Al changing his mind.

Ed sighed, not bothering to struggle, in truth, Hughes didn't have to worry about Ed changing his mind about having dinner with his family either, somewhere along the line, Ed had already secretly started to think of them all as family. His own family.

He'd never tell anyone this, of course, and it wouldn't change the fact that Al was the most important person, and getting Al back to normal was the most important thing. To be honest, he was completely aware that he had more family than just Al, Winry was like a sister, Pinako an aunt, Gracia had always been a bit like a mother to him- not that she would replace his _own_ mother- Elicia was like a little sister, Hughes was like a father- and he was definitely preferable over Ed's actual dad- heck, he even thought Roy was a bit like an older brother. That incredibly annoying brother that more than half the time you don't even enjoy talking to. But an older brother nonetheless. And one he looked up to a lot at that.

He had always said that he and Al could only rely on each other, but part of him, couldn't help but feel that it would be okay for them to rely on these people as well.

* * *

After dinner, Al began playing with Elicia once more, when she turned to Ed and asked him to play as well, the blonde had merely shook his head, smiling slightly and saying that he probably shouldn't. Hughes had sighed at that, it was clear the boy had a lot on his mind.

So while Gracia was in the living room with Al and Elicia, he sat in a seat across from Ed and looked at the boy over the kitchen table, "so, what's the matter?" he asked the boy, he saw Ed give a surprised start, turning to Hughes, he smiled hesitantly, "uh, I don't know what you're talking about," Hughes sighed, "is it about the philosopher's stone?" Ed's reaction answered the question for him; the boy looked up sharply at Hughes before turning away from the man and muttering a weak 'no'.

Hughes sighed, "let me guess, you came to another dead end, and you're wondering if you ever will find the philosopher's stone, you're wondering if the whole idea is going to be realised as pointless, and you'll have to find a different way of turning Al back to normal," Ed didn't answer and Hughes sighed, "you've found proof of the philosopher stone's existence right? You're a determined boy, both you and your brother; I believe that you'll get your bodies back to normal."

Ed remained silent and Hughes sighed, getting to his feet, _'I wish those two would trust me more,'_ he thought morosely, "you know," he paused at the doorway, turning to look back at Ed, "it's okay to rely on other people, you don't have to just depend on yourself," he told the boy.

Hughes headed into the living room, smiling at the sight of Al drawing with Elicia, _'hmm… maybe I should do some research on the philosopher's stone to give them a hand.'_

* * *

**Ahahahahaha... did you like it? Hughes broke his promise to Gracia.**

**And we all know what happens to him after that...**

**Technically, I was nice, I was tempted to write another scene where Ed and Al find out about it and Ed is kinda thinking how he can't rely on people after all, because he just ends getting them hurt.**

**So I was nice enough not to add that**

**It still had a technically happy ending.**

**Hughes was like a dad to Ed, that was the whole point of this, I just ended up making it discreetly sad because I thought it would be fun.**

**Well... interesting to do.**

**Yes, I'm a not very nice person.**

**I haven't gotten any review or requests for this in a while though so I got sad.**

**Soooooooooooooooo... **

**Let me know what you thought!**

**Request a pairing!**

**And since I'm advertising... check out my other stories!**

**XD**


	14. Olivier x Buccaneer: Ice Queen

**Okay... so I have been updating really slowly lately like... oh my God I am so sorry, but school's being... school... which is time-consuming and... yeah...**

**Um... this is requested Olivier x Buccaneer, I don't know the shipping name for it.**

**This is dedicated to Etaleah**

**I unfortunately don't own FMAB, if I did, and the drama would be... non-existence and it would be about as subtle as a sledgehammer.**

**Anyway... onward to the fanfic!**

* * *

**Olivier x Buccaneer Romance:**

Captain Buccaneer lay on his back, the sky above him a beautiful blue, the blood surrounding him crimson-red. He could hear voices, the voices of the soldiers, panicked and shouting, begging him not to go, that they still needed him.

He wanted to shake his head at their folly 'survival of the fittest' he'd remind them, if he had the strength for it, he wanted to tell them that they could manage without him, that they should leave him behind. It was the way of the Briggs soldiers, he had played his part, and now, it was the end for him. But these soldiers needed to keep fighting, he wanted to tell them that, but his strength- the strength he had so prided himself on- was fading, that homunculi had stopped the soldier from getting in, the Major General's orders had been carried out.

For him, that was enough.

A small smile spread across his face as he remembered his first meeting the woman so many years ago.

_'1__st__ Lieutenant Buccaneer grumbled irritably to himself, he had been reassigned to Briggs to work under the jurisdiction of the infamous Ice Queen of Briggs, Olivier Armstrong. He didn't know this woman, and he didn't like Briggs, the cold weather wreaked havoc on his automail arm. He had met the Ice Queen only once so far, she had looked him up and down before stating that he looked far too weak for a Briggs man, then dismissed him with a contemptuous flick of the head._

_Buccaneer had bristled but said nothing, you don't aggravate a superior, and to answer back to the __**Ice Queen**__ is like a death wish._

_So he had stayed quiet, but he did not forget the insult to his strength nor his capability. He promised himself he would build up his strength and prove to her that he was deserving of his rank. He didn't know why her opinion of him mattered so, but it did. However, after being in Briggs, enduring its cold, harsh, unforgiving weather, for only a week, Buccaneer quietly admitted to himself that this goal may be a bit more difficult then he initially believed. His automail arm was constantly cold- a piercing cold that sent lances of pain up his arm, but after discreetly observing other soldiers with automail and seeing their obvious lack of discomfit, Buccaneer decided to remain silent. It was obviously some Briggs training, and maybe he had yet to receive it, but he was hardly going to go crying to the nurse like a little,__** weak,**__ child._

* * *

_A few days later, Buccaneer was stopped by a voice, "your arm looks a bit uncomfortable, need me to have a look at it?" Buccaneer turned to see the automail mechanic for the Briggs soldiers standing, looking at him speculatively. His arm was a frozen, flaring stump of agony, but he waved it off dismissively, "nothing I can't handle," he told the man. But his words did little to appease the mechanic who frowned and strode forward, taking a hold of his automail and inspecting it with an expert's eye._

_After a few moments he frowned and looked up at Buccaneer, "did you get your automail suited for cold weather before you headed out to Briggs? You need a special kind of metal for automail up here," Buccaneer stared at the man dumbly. Suited? Special kind of metal? What was he talking about? There hadn't been time to visit his old automail mechanic to be honest, the man probably didn't even know he had gone off up to Briggs; the transfer had been sudden and he had found himself on a train to Briggs before he could do anything about it. So he didn't know if there was something special precautions one had to take before leaving for a cold, snowing place like Briggs._

_The mechanic peered into his face and sighed, "we'd better get you fixed up," he told the man finally; he grimaced, "the Major General isn't going to be happy about this."_

_She wasn't._

* * *

_"What use are you to me dead from frostbite?" Buccaneer winced but didn't respond, he had been foolish, but he didn't know how things worked in Briggs, he'd made a wrong assumption. After a moment, Olivier Armstrong sighed, she glanced at Buccaneer's automail and- for a fraction of a second- her mask slipped, her face softened momentarily._

_It had been slight, but it had been enough._

_Buccaneer stared at the woman, surprised, he wasn't good at reading people, he was the type of person who ran head-long into the action, the 'act first, ask question later' type of guy; but when the Major General looked at his arm he could see the relief and worry in her expression. In that moment, Buccaneer realised something._

_Olivier Armstrong was a hard woman, she was not called the Ice Queen for no reason. She was a person who didn't form attachments to people easily, she didn't let her feelings come first, and always acted with her head, not her heart. If necessary, she could leave a person behind, to carry out the mission or the assignment. She had trained her men accordingly, they acted as a single body, together and synchronised, she taught them so that they would be able to stand without her, if she were killed, they could keep going on. Things like compassion and sympathy quite simply weren't allowed._

_Survival of the fittest, the first rule of Briggs._

_But despite this, she was also a person who didn't just want to lose one of her men for a pointless cause. She wouldn't let them die for no reason. She __**did**__ care about them all, however, she didn't allow that care to affect her actions._

_She was a cold woman._

_And strong._

_An Ice Queen in more than just name._

_Olivier gave the automail mechanic a curt nod then turned on her heel walking out of the room. Buccaneer watched silently as she left, watching the way her long, blonde hair swept behind her, the confident, efficient steps she took, her upright, straight posture._

_It was only then that Buccaneer realised his heart was racing._

* * *

_After that incident, Buccaneer's opinion of the Major General and the manner in which he approached his reassignment changed drastically. He still worked on building up his strength, but now for a different reason._

_To be more useful to Major General Armstrong._

_The cold, hard woman who, in a brief moment had given him a glimpse into what was in her heart; for him, that had been enough. So he worked to serve the Ice Queen, he worked to obey the Major General, he worked to aid Olivier Armstrong._

_He worked to help the woman he loved.'_

* * *

Buccaneer smiled, his vision of the sky blurred but that mattered not to him, for in his mind was a more beautiful image, of the time he first met Olivier Armstrong.

Of the time he first fell for her.

He had promised himself that he would die for her if he had to, he would serve her with his last ounce of strength.

And that was what he had done.

He sighed, and in that sigh, the last of his air left him. He trusted she would be able to solve the situation, she was strong and capable. She wouldn't make some foolish mistake, it was how she was.

Independent.

Beautiful.

And cold.

As he faded away, the cries of the soldiers falling on deaf ears one thought, one statement, that had governed his life for so long now, stayed with him.

_'I love you, my Ice Queen.'_

* * *

**Okay... uh... yeah, sorry, I made your request a sad one...**

**Well, I hope you liked it all the same.**

**You know the drill, if you liked it, maybe want your own pairing or trio or whatever (romantically, as bros or like... a family fic) just send me a request with the reviews.**

**And the Hughes family one was very funny, I don't know what you're talking about Bec :D**


	15. AlMei Romance: A Grave Visit

**Hello! Okay, so I haven't been uploading to here for a bit sorry)**

**This one is dedicated to AkuBeku from WAY back, it's AlMei**

**I'm gonna be going in order of requests so yeah**

**Um... I don't own FMAB**

**This contains light spoilers pertaining to Hohenheim and what happened to him, and Al's ending and stuff, yeah, idk, it's set after the Promised Day and stuff so yeah**

**It's really mostly just made up of Al monologue, that's it pretty much, yeah**

**Enjoy**

* * *

**AlMei Romance: A Grave Visit**

Al sat down, crouching on his knees in front of the graves, there were two headstones, and he smiled softly as he gazed at them, "hey dad, hey mum," he said, "I'm back from my visit to Xing, I've learnt so much about alkahestry, Mei's a great teacher, it was nice seeing Ling and Lan Fan again too," he leaned back, sitting down properly and crossing his legs, "I'll have to bring some more flowers next time," he said thoughtfully, as his gaze fell on the withered bouquet that rested between the two graves.

He fidgeted; "a lot's actually happened since I last visited, when I left for Xing two years ago, I never imagined that..." he trailed off, a small smile alighting on his features as he thought about his time in Xing.

He remembered when he had first arrived, and Mei had run out to greet him, hugging him tightly around the waist, he remembered how he had blushed, and Ling had appeared making a comment about the two lovebirds while Al had struggled to keep himself from turning any redder and Lan Fan had smiled from her position behind Ling. At the time, he had thought Ling was just teasing, he had thought that Mei was just happy to see him; now these things weren't necessarily untrue, but they certainly weren't the _whole_ truth either.

His gaze became unfocused as he remembered all the time he had spent with Mei, her teaching him everything to know about alkahestry, he remembered the day he had realised that he had fallen in love with her. He remembered how he fallen for her excitable nature, kind-heart, her cleverness, her dedication, he had fallen in love with everything about her.

He remembered how he had spent the next few weeks after that revelation stressing over it all, wondering if she maybe liked him back in that way, if he should risk their friendship in order to pursue something better. He remembered how he had wondered at one point- during a moment of low confidence about it all- if Mei even really like him, if she wasn't just being polite and agreeing to teach him.

He couldn't help but chuckle a little at his foolish worries that, at the time, had seemed so large, but now the answers to the questions he had asked himself, were as plain as day.

He bit his lip," a lot has happened," he repeated, "more than I thought would," and he wanted to explain it, but he didn't know how. How to explain the hopelessness he had felt when he had thought he wouldn't have a chance with Mei, the endless days he had spent trying to decide whether or not he should tell her, the calm that came with the decision to just admit his feelings and find out if she felt the same way.

There was no way he'd be able come close to describing something like the elation he had felt, when Mei had jumped at him and given him a kiss, signifying that yes, she felt the same way. Whenever he held her in his arms, hugged her, or gave a small kiss, he'd feel his heart swell, an irrational happiness overcoming him just by seeing her. Whenever he spoke to her, he found himself just listening to her voice, getting lost in the way she'd smile at certain points, the way her eyes would light up when describing a particularly exciting thing she had seen or heard or learnt.

He felt closer to her than anyone else, and he knew he wouldn't be able to bear the idea of losing her.

He loved her, more than anything in the world.

But there weren't any words to describe these feelings properly.

He had realised, that the word 'love' paled in comparison to the actual thing, it did a poor job of describing this pure, perfect emotion that could provide endless happiness, content and excitement. This one emotion that could bring two people closer, connect them.

In the end, he only smiled and shook his head, "I fell in love," he said finally, "and I'm sure you both know just what that feels like, the desire to grow old with that person, with them forever, in this life and the next, I never truly understood it; I love you both, and I love Ed and Winry and Aunt Pinako, but this is different, this is unlike anything I've ever felt before, but I know you already know that yourself, so I guess all that needs to be said is that she feels the same way, and I'm happy with her.

"Her name's Mei," he told them, a smile appearing on his lips just from the name alone, "she actually came back here to Amestris with me, Ling and Lan Fan came too, for a visit," his smile turned into a full grin and he chuckled, "you should have seen it, Ed actually managed to stay polite for the first few minutes of the conversation, I think he forgot how much Mei and the others annoyed him, but I know he likes them… though he does call Ling a 'squinty-eyed prince' and I know he called Mei a 'brat' at least once, I can tell he likes them. You know he and Winry got together right? That's actually why I came back, for their wedding, even General Mustang's coming up here with the Lieutenant General Hawkeye, and _he's_ got his election for Fuhrer to worry about," he paused, shaking his head at himself, "but of course you'd know that, Ed's probably been up here to tell you himself… and I bet he's probably already complained heaps about how he doesn't _want_ them at his wedding.

"Mei said she wants to have a chance to talk to you both, because she never got to meet _you_, mum, and she only saw dad for a moment or two at the Promised Day," he leaned back on his hands, staring up at the sky thoughtfully, "I think she wanted to give me a chance to say hello to you both on my own before she came, she's thoughtful like that," and it was as though now that he had started talking about the girl, a dam had broken and he was describing everything.

The time he had tried to ride a horse only to fall off and humiliate himself- and how he hadn't even minded because he got to hear Mei's laugh- when his lessons in alkahestry had first started and how slow he had been to first understand it all, there suddenly wasn't enough time to describe it all.

As Al was beginning to describe Ling's reaction to the news that the two of them were together (namely involving shaking his head and asking 'it took you _this_ long?') he heard his name called out and he turned around to see Mei standing there with an apologetic look on her face, "Winry sent me to get you," she told him, "dinner's ready," Al smiled and stood up, brushing himself off. He gave the Xingese girl an affectionate kiss on the cheek before telling her, "you go on ahead, I'll catch up in a second, there's one last thing I want to tell them," Mei smiled, not questioning why he thought they could hear him, trusting that in some way, they would.

She turned and walked down the hill, Al watched her for a few seconds with a faint smile on his lips before he turned back to the graves and once more crouched down, "there's something important I need to tell you," he said, idly reaching forward and pulling out a weed from one of the gravestones, "you see, I just can't imagine being without Mei, the idea of not having her in my life is just awful, and Ed and Winry's wedding, seeing how happy they both are, it kind of made me realise that that's something I really want too, so I… well…" he trailed off, reaching into his pocket and thoughtfully rubbing his thumb on the velvet casing of a small box, he smiled at the reassurance of its presence, "well, I hope that soon there'll be another wedding," he said at last, standing once more, "and maybe Mei would like the idea of fixing up our old house and living there?" He gave one final smile, before turning and walking away from the graves, he hadn't heard any response, any answer, but he knew that his mother and father had heard him, and he knew that wherever they were at the moment…

They were smiling.

* * *

**Yeah kinda short?**

**idk**

**Um... hope you guys liked it, I'm trying to do all of the Romantic one-shot requests, but I have a question regarding one of them, someone asked for EdxOC, do you think you could specify? What kind of OC, who are they, what do they look like, what's their personality like, etc?**

**Yeah... just... let me know if you could?**

**So, review! Request, blah**

**Thanks for reading**

**:D**


	16. Hawkeye Family: Silly Father

**Okay so... this is the Berthold x Riza family one shot dedicated to ****AkuBeku**

**Uploading this a day early but whatever, I figured I might as well.**

**I just have a question about a request I received. One person asked for Ed x OC and that's fine, I was just wondering if you could specify what kind of OC? Or do you not mind? If you have a particular kind in mind, could you maybe give me an idea as to what their physical appearance as well as characterisation is?**

**If you don't particularly mind and you just want Ed with any kind of OC then that's cool too.**

**Uh yeah, this is kinda sadstuck... except not sadstuck because it's not Homestuck and I should really remember to stop thinking of it like that.**

**Oh well...**

**FMAB does not belong to me and I sincerely doubt that it ever will**

* * *

**Hawkeye Family: Silly Father**

Riza loved her father; her mother had left him because she was angry at how much time he wasted on his alchemy, Riza didn't understand what her mother had meant when she had told him how she felt as though she came second to his studies. Surely her mother understood that father loved them, but his studies would always be the most important thing? When her mother left, her father became even more withdrawn, and soon little Riza blamed the woman for their troubles, thinking that she shouldn't have left, she should have tried to understand her husband and the way he worked; as it was, soon it was just four year old Riza and her father.

He didn't often play with her, a lot of the time she was left to her own devices, but every now and then he would come out of his study and pick up a doll and start brushing her hair, before putting it up in a silly hairstyle and asking Riza what she thought, making the little girl laugh.

She always treasured the time she spent with her father. And even many years in the future, when their relationship would become more cold and distant, Riza would still think back on those days with a small smile.

"What do you think of this one?" Berthold asked, holding up a doll with hair stuck up in three messy ponytails- one on the top of her head, and one on each side- Riza giggled, shaking her head, "no daddy, that's silly," and Berthold smiled, "yes, you're right, aren't you? Silly me," he chuckled, shaking his head in good humour.

At that point the phone rang and Berthold looked up from his daughter, "hold on a second sweet-heart," he told the girl, before getting to his feet and walking into the next room, the phone's ringing was abruptly cut off as he picked it up off the receiver, Riza turned and looked towards the door with vague curiosity as she heard murmuring seeping out of the room. After waiting for a few minutes, the little girl huffed grumpily and got to her feet, walking over to the door, doll clutched tight in hand.

The door opened before she could touch it, Riza saw her father walk out with a slightly worried expression on his face, "daddy, what's wrong?" she asked, frowning slightly, Berthold shook his head, petting her hair absent-mindedly, "nothing dear," Riza frowned a bit more before nodding and holding up her doll, "then, can we play some more…?" she trailed off as she saw the way her father was looking at the door to his study. She knew his answer before he even opened his mouth, "sorry darling, daddy has some work he has to do," and with that said, he gave her head a final pet before slipping past and opening the door, locking it behind him.

Riza sat down again once more, picking up the doll whose hair had been styled by Berthold, she gazed at it for a moment before sighing and throwing it to the ground, "you're very silly daddy," she muttered, a sad frown appearing on her face, "but even if you are I still want to play with you."

* * *

Riza cared for her father; she wished he would spend more time with her, but she understood that he had a lot of important work to do; so on the days when he'd shut himself into his study and lock the door, she'd go for walks to entertain herself. She was ten now, she could look after herself.

She walked past a shooting range and paused, watching from outside the wire fence as one of the shooters fired their weapon only to curse as the aim went wide, "it's really loud isn't it?" Riza turned to see a girl with long dark hair and a friendly smile standing next to her, Riza gave her a cautious frown, but the brunette didn't seem to notice and merely stuck out her hand, "my name's Rebecca," she said cheerfully, after a moment's hesitation Riza took it, "I'm Riza."

* * *

Riza sat reading a book that she had borrowed from her friend Rebecca, she looked up from the page as she saw her father exit his study, "how is your work going dad?" she asked him, he gave a distracted nod, "hmm… yeah, it's going well, I think I might be onto something here, fire alchemy isn't very easy to work out, there's only a few notes on it from various alchemists who experimented on it, but I think I'm nearing a break through," Riza nodded, she watched him head into the kitchen and make himself a meal, after he had finished eating he turned back to the study and Riza bit her lip, "um, dad, I was wondering if you wanted to read this book with me-" the door slammed close and she heard the sound of the lock clicking.

Clutching the book closer Riza turned back to the novel and bent over, tucking her feet under her and resolutely not looking at the study door. She had to return the book to Rebecca by tomorrow.

* * *

Riza was fond of her father; but he sometimes had the ability to surprise her, as he did now standing in the doorway with a teenage boy around her age behind him, the boy was rather handsome with dark hair and eyes and a confident smirk, she barely heard her father as he told her the boy's name 'Roy Mustang' here to learn fire alchemy.

Looking away from his gaze she stepped back and let her father back into the house.

It seemed he had forgotten the keys.

* * *

Riza liked her father; she wanted to spend time with him, but the Roy Mustang boy was taking up any of his time that wasn't devoted to spending in his study. When her father called her into his study one day, Riza had walked in, looking around in wonder, she had never been allowed into the study before, and some childish part of her had always thought there was some magical secret in it; maybe it was a door to another world? But it was normal, nothing there to suggest why her father would spend so much time in it, instead of with his own daughter.

"Yes dad?" she asked politely, waiting to see what he wanted, Berthold turned from his notes, "I am ill, Riza my dear," Riza's eyes widened, "what do you mean?" Berthold shook his head, "my years researching the secret to fire alchemy have taken their toll," Riza couldn't believe what she was hearing, she felt her throat close at the thought of losing her father, but Berthold smiled slightly, "don't worry, I've still got a few years left," he told her, but Riza shook her head, "that's barely anything, dad, how can you be okay with this?"

Berthold sighed, "As long as my research is safe then I can die happy," Riza frowned, _'what about me?'_ she wanted to ask, but she wasn't sure she wanted to hear his answer. Berthold picked up one of his notes, turning to look at Riza thoughtfully, "I wanted a chance to code these, let a select group of alchemists learn the secrets of fire alchemy, like young Roy will, but it seems I do not have the time," he placed the sheet back on the desk, "all my hard work wasted," Riza frowned, she didn't want her father to have any regrets, if he desired something, she would do what she could to help him, it was her duty as his daughter.

"Is there anything I can do, dad?" she asked, stepping forward; he turned to her, a gleam in his eye as though this was what he had been waiting for, "I did have one idea my dear, and I believe you would be very helpful in this," Riza nodded, "I'm going to leave you with the task of guarding my notes, can I trust you to do this?" Surprised, Riza nodded, he wanted _her_ to? Surely he would prefer Roy?

"What do you want me to do?" she asked, Berthold seemed to think for a moment, "Are you willing to do what I tell you?" he asked, Riza nodded, did he want her to do something specific with the notes? Hide them? Maybe ask Roy for help and code them into books together?

"I'm willing to do anything."

* * *

Riza hated her father.

* * *

Riza stood with Roy at the grave, she felt like she should cry, honour his death with tears or some form of sorrow, but her face was blank. She had forgiven her father for what he had done; she had forgiven him, despite the fact that every time she undressed and saw her back in the mirror she would see the evidence of his betrayal. She forgave him for that, as a good daughter should.

But her emotions about him were conflicted, some part of her was glad he was gone, some part thought back to her days as a child when he would play with her, and she would miss him. She's not entirely sure what difference it would have made, but she decided it would have been nice to have a little more time with her father.

She turned and listened to Roy as he spoke of joining the military, and all Riza could think was that she didn't want to lose another person she loved, so she decided she would follow him, whether he wanted her to not, she would join the military despised by the father she loved, to protect the man she loved.

* * *

When they got home, Riza went into her room, her clothes were wet from the rain that had started pouring down while they were out, but Riza paid this fact no heed as she knelt onto her knees and reached under her bed for a box, groping around for a few moments, her hand connected with the wooden corner and she pulled it out, blowing away the dust that had collected on it.

She wiped it off and unclasped the lid, lifting it up to reveal the contents.

Inside lay two dolls, one with its hair in a silly hairstyle in three messy ponytails, one on the top, and one on either side.

She reached in and pulled it out, gazing at it for a moment before smiling softly,

"Goodbye, my silly father."

* * *

**Yeah... not that great I guess, idk... I just liked the idea of certain things involving this that I won't go into now so...**

**There you go.**

**The next one I'm doing is AlWin, I initially had one idea about it, um, I kinda scratched that idea when Bec pointed out something... particular about it that I hadn't known.**

**Anyway! Review! Request!**

**And I hope you liked it!**


	17. AlWin Romance: Smile

**Okay, this is the AlWin one-shot requested by AlphonseElric**

**Um... this is set when they're kids (which to be honest, should hopefully be fairly obvious almost immediately).**

**Sadstuck warning.**

**And I should really stop calling sad non-Homestuck related things sadstuck this is getting to be an issue.**

**Um... I don't own FMAB**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**AlWin Romance: Smile**

"Honestly Al, I don't know why you insist on fighting with Ed all the time," Al flinched away guiltily from the girl who stood in front of him, hands on hips, towering over him with an angry expression. Al shifted, pulling his legs up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, "Ed said that dad was a good-for-nothing who we're better off without," he mumbled, feeling tears well up in his eyes again as he remembered how angry Ed had looked, how upset his mother had been.

Winry's expression softened and she sighed, "well Ed is a butthead," she said simply, "I thought you knew this already," she sat down next to him, glancing at him curiously for a moment, "why did your dad leave?" she asked after a moment, Al shrugged, "I don't know, mum won't say," he sighed, burying his head in his arms, "but I miss him," Winry frowned before leaning over and wrapping her arms around him in a hug, "if it makes you feel any better," she said softly, "my parents are going away to help out with the war," her grip tightened, "I'm going to really miss them," Al felt guilt flood him and he bit his lip, silently reprimanding himself for only thinking about himself.

He turned and wrapped his arms around Winry, returning her hug gently, _'here she is trying to cheer me up, even though she's upset herself, I should stop being so selfish,'_ he shifted and Winry leaned forward more into the hug. They sat like this together for some time, and Al couldn't help but think how nice it was, being able to spend time with Winry without having Ed around. He loved his brother, but for some reason, recently, he had been feeling a little jealous, it was over silly things, like when Ed managed to make Winry smile or laugh, he'd want to frown and tell his older brother that that wasn't _fair_, that _he_ should be the one making her happy.

But that was stupid of him.

Eventually Winry pulled away, wiping her nose and sniffling a little, Al frowned at the loss of contact but didn't say anything, pulling away as well and wrapping his arms around his legs once more, just looking at her.

He couldn't help but notice that even when she was upset, she was really pretty, her nose and cheeks had turned rosy red, and her mouth was pulled down into a sad little pout, her blonde hair hanging in front of her face. He wanted to lean forwards and tuck the hair behind her ear, he wanted to give her another hug, and he felt his brow crease in confusion at this desire. Winry turned and gave him a smile, "sorry, I meant to cheer you up, but instead, I just got upset all over you," Al returned the smile, "it's okay, thanks for coming to cheer me up," they were friends, it was fine for him to want to make her feel better. That's all.

* * *

Al remembered the time he had a fight with Ed, of course, that wasn't an uncommon occurrence, they often got into fights, they were brothers after all, and the fact that they loved each other dearly didn't change that fact.

The reason Al remembered it so well, was _why_ they fought.

Often, they would fight about their father; Al thought Ed was too harsh whenever they spoke of him, Ed thought Al didn't understand anything.

This time it was different.

He doesn't remember who started it, who suggested it; all he knows is that once it had been put out in the open, he had decided he couldn't lose this.

It had been the fight to see who could marry Winry.

The second he had known what was at stake, he had thrown away any apprehensive feelings about fighting his brother; it was just a game anyway, right?

It wasn't until afterwards, when Winry was scolding them both for being stupid boys, arguing for even stupider reasons, that Al began to wonder why he had been so adamant about winning this fight in particular.

And it was about then he began to realise the truth.

* * *

Al enjoyed spending time with his brother, he enjoyed spending time with his mother, but most of all, he enjoyed spending time with Winry. He liked the way she smiled at him, how she would give him a hug hello, he liked how she was strong and clever. Maybe Ed was right and she was a bit bossy sometimes, maybe she could be stubborn, and maybe she could be somewhat brash every now and then. But so could Ed. And so could Al.

Al found that he really liked Winry, everything about her, even when she was being bossy and stubborn, Al didn't mind, he decided that he wanted to spend more time with her whenever he could, he found himself volunteering to help her out whenever she needed it, silently thanking Ed whenever the older boy would refuse to help. Sometimes it was good having a lazy brother.

He made it his secret mission to make Winry happy, whenever he made her smile, he'd feel ridiculously proud for ages after.

He wanted her to always be happy.

* * *

"Hey Winry," the blonde girl turned towards the sound of her voice, smiling at Ed and Al as they ran up to her, "school was so boring today," she rolled her eyes, the two boys nodded, Ed grinned, stretching towards the sky, "well it's over for a little bit at least now, so that's something," he said cheerfully.

Al nodded in agreement, attention flicking between his older brother and his friend, he finally settled on gazing at Winry as discreetly as possible. Which for Al, wasn't a lot.

"So," Winry said, glancing from Al to Ed; Al noticed how pretty her voice was, "we're having stew for dinner tonight," she said casually and Ed perked up immediately, "stew?" he asked eagerly, Winry nodded and he jumped up, "alright," he laughed delightedly, "stew is the best thing ever to be created by humans, apart from alchemy," he grinned, "I mean, they put _milk_ in it, but it _still_ tastes good! Whoever made it must have been a _genius_," Winry giggled at Ed's exuberance and Al's heart hurt a little, but he smiled along anyway. It was good that she was happy, right?

"You guys aren't invited for dinner, Ed, I was just telling you," Winry told him in a teasing tone, Ed immediately looked crestfallen, shaking his head and grabbing Winry, "no! You can't do this to me!" he cried dramatically, and Winry bit her lip, trying not to laugh, "you don't understand Winry! Come on, don't be like that! Please! You could invite me over to dinner right now!" the blonde finally couldn't help herself, she started laughing again.

Al couldn't help but notice how she didn't try to escape from Ed's hold. Jealousy flared in his chest briefly, but he calmed almost instantly, he shouldn't act so foolish. He took a calming breath, if Winry was happy then it was fine, as long as he could make her smile, it didn't matter if Ed could as well, that was good, surely? It meant she'd be happy more often.

As long as he _could_ make her happy, then didn't mind.

* * *

Al didn't like seeing Winry cry, when they had found out about her parents, he'd felt a painful twinge in his heart at the sight of the blonde girl, sitting at the table, head buried in arms, body shaking with sobs.

He hadn't been able to make her smile.

* * *

**Ahhhhh I forget how to write romance!**

**Blurgh**

**Well anyway, next week I'm either going to be putting up another rewritten chapter for PKH or a whole new chapter for PKH2**

**So the weekend after next I'll be uploading the Bradley family one**

**Its like... all from Mrs Bradley's POV and because it felt weird her not having a canon first name I just called her Marie. So its all from Marie's POV and... yeah**

**Well let me know if you liked this! Request another paring if you want!**

**(And if the person who asked for EDxOC could explain the OC they had in mind for it I'd appreciate it!)**


	18. Bradley Family: Family Of Lies

**I just realised the other day how utterly random some of my author's notes are.**

**Anyway... I just finished watching Sword Art Online and I just wow. As I expected to I fell completely in love with the main character :T**

**But that's beside the point here... this is the Bradley Family one-shot that was requested**

**It is dedicated to MiyazakiOtaku**

**I hope you like it!**

**And no, I do not own FMAB**

* * *

**Bradley Family: Family Of Lies**

They sat around the dinner table together, Furher King Bradley, his son, and his wife; Marie Bradley turned towards her husband with a smile on her face, "so how was your day, dear?" she asked him, the man chuckled in response, "very stressful unfortunately, but I am the Furher after all, it's my job so I'm not going to complain," she nodded, giving him an encouraging smile before turning back to the meal.

When they finished eating, Bradley headed towards his office, pulling together some files he was once again slipped on his military outfit, before heading out and giving his wife a kiss, "I have to go back there now I'm sorry to say," he told them, turning to Selim and giving him a loving hug, "aww," Selim pouted, disappointment written across his expression, "I thought you would be staying home for the rest of the night," he whined. Bradley chuckled, reaching out and ruffling the boy's hair, "sorry Selim, but I have to go back, I'll be home again later on tonight," the young boy smiled, "I'll wait for you to get home," he announced eagerly, but Bradley shook his head, "I do not want to see you up, I'll be getting home late, too late for you, okay?" Selim pulled his mouth into a pout again but nodded reluctantly, "okay, Father."

Marie watched the exchange with a small smile on her face, when Bradley rose and walked out of the door she sighed, it would be a lie if she said she didn't wish he was home more. But as he had said, it was his job as Furher, and so it was her job as the Furher's wife to remain faithful, and try to help him as often as she can.

She heard a disappointed sigh and turned to chuckle slightly at her son, she was delighted that her husband and her son had such a close bond, "I think it's time for bed Selim," she nodded to a butler standing beside a wall. The man strode forward and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, "come, Master Selim," he spoke in a prim, articulate manner, "let us prepare you for bed," Selim sighed and reluctantly nodded, turning to walk away with the older man.

Marie smiled, Selim had always been such a clever, well-behaved boy, though she hadn't known him when he was younger, he was still every bit of a son to her and she loved him dearly.

"Oh, I wonder what it will be like during the rebellious teenager stage," she chuckled to herself lightly.

* * *

Marie kissed her husband on the cheek in welcome, "hello dear," she greeted, "did anything interesting happen at work today?" the man chuckled, his moustache twitching slightly, "well, we recruited our new alchemist," before he could say anything else, Selim had run into the room, he jumped at his father, hugging him, "hello father," the boy smiled, "who is the new alchemist you recruited?"

Bradley ruffled the boy's hair, "well, you're not going to believe it, but we found an incredibly talented alchemist and you know what? He's only twelve years old, his name is Edward Elric, we're calling him the Fullmetal Alchemist," Marie, frowned, "twelve?" she repeated, worriedly she shook her head, "isn't that awfully young for a State Alchemist?" Bradley nodded, "he's the youngest in all of history to become an alchemist of the state, but he has massive potential, and we decided it was worth it."

She smiled slightly, a small frown still present in her features, "if you say so," this boy sounded awfully young to be having such a dangerous job, he wouldn't have had much of a chance at a childhood, starting work like this so early, but it wasn't her place to say. She knew her husband would make the right choices.

* * *

She had been hearing an awful lot of gossip about the state's youngest alchemist lately, some of the stories made her concerned for the boy, when she found out that he had a younger brother that concern had only heightened. What did their mother think about this?

Marie gazed across the room to where Selim sat reading, a small smile was on his face, she watched as he shifted, completely engrossed in his book. She smiled slightly, he was a good boy, she wanted to protect her son, and she wanted to aid her husband in any way possible.

She glanced at the newspaper, a few lines creasing her brow as she gazed at the picture on front; it was of the Fullmetal Alchemist, the longer she looked at it, the younger he seemed.

She couldn't help but imagine Selim there, in the dangerous stories she had listened to, horrified.

Marie sighed, she trusted that her husband knew what he was doing, and that he would be able to do the right thing.

* * *

"I want to be just like the Fullmetal Alchemist!" she sighed, frowning slightly at her son's declaration, he wanted to be like that poor boy? She wanted to shake her head, pull Selim close to her and hug him tightly, "he's so cool, I want to grow up and be a powerful alchemist and help father in the military," she smiled and nodded, she wanted to protect him, but for now, it couldn't hurt to let him dream.

* * *

She saw the car and she saw Selim standing there, not noticing.

Marie cried out to her son, who turned towards the approaching car, stepping back slightly in fear. The driver tried to stop slamming down on the brakes. She moved without thinking, jumping into the middle of the road and grabbing her son, holding him tightly to shield him with her own body.

She braced herself for the impact.

But it never came.

She turned to see the car stopped mere inches from the two of them; the driver had an expression that was a mix between traumatised and relieved. She let out a relieved gasp, tightening her hold on Selim and hugging him fiercely.

He was okay.

* * *

She felt the tears streaming down her face as the short blonde boy walked towards her solemnly, he held out a coat and she looked down to see a small, small child nestled inside it.

She let out a small, sobbing gasp and took it, gently cradling the burden in her arms.

Her family had been a lie.

Her happiness had been false.

She gazed at the small figure lying curled up in the coat and she sighed, gently holding the coat in her hands, her son was a homunculus.

But that didn't mean she didn't love him.

It didn't mean she didn't want him to have a chance.

* * *

"Mother, I picked you some flowers from the garden," Marie turned towards her son and smiled, "really dear? Thank you," she took them from him gently, turning and placing them in a vase, "they're beautiful," Selim nodded eagerly, "do you really like them?"

Marie gazed down at her son's eager face and smiled at the genuine hopefulness she saw there, crouching down she hugged him, "I love them, Selim."

* * *

**So... yeah.**

**I hope you liked it? I kinda had no idea what to write for this one at first so I just... wrote... and this happened.**

**The next one will be Envy/Kid!Ed and will be uploaded either next weekend or the weekend after that.**


	19. Edvy Bromance: Little Twerp

**Well, here's another requested chapter.**

**I really don't know why you guys keep asking for me I am a terrible writer, but whatever, it's really cool that I'm getting these requests so I'm not complaining.**

**This is an Edvy Bromance chapter, in the request I was asked to make it a situation where they meet and kind of get to know each other before all the business with trying to bring back their mum happens.**

**This is dedicated to In The Forest**

**I hope I had the right idea and that you like this.**

**I don't own FMAB.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

**Edvy Bromance: Little Twerp**

"Van Hohenheim has had children," Envy made a disgusted face, "what? He bred with a human?" Father gazed at him impassively and Envy unconsciously straightened, feeling foolish for his response almost immediately.

He crossed his arms, taking on an insolent appearance, "okay, what about it? How does that affect me?" Father had summoned him, he knew he was to receive new orders and from the way the conversation was going, he was guessing it would have something to do with the kids.

"He has two children, sons, from what we have heard," Envy turned towards the new voice; it resonated, echoing around the room. He made a face, turning towards the small boy, "hello Pride," he greeted dryly. The boy nodded, "if they're his children they're bound to be powerful alchemists, they could end up being potential sacrifices," Envy rolled his eyes, "so you want me to check them out?" he asked.

Pride nodded, "up until now, we haven't risked going near the family, however, just recently, it seems that Hohenheim has deemed it necessary to leave, what he is doing, we don't know," a slightly perturbed look appeared on the young boy's expression but it quickly vanished, "we will take advantage of this opportunity however, we don't know how long until he chooses to come back, so yes, we need you to pay them a visit," Envy groaned but nodded and Pride turned to Father, signalling the conversation was over and it was time for him to go.

He exited the room hurriedly, just hearing as Pride began to speak once more, "the war in Ishval…"

* * *

"The Elric household? Oh, just follow the road that way for about five minutes and you'll be there," Envy forced a smile, "thanks," he nodded, turning and heading up the road the man had pointed to. He was currently as a man in his early twenties; he had no intention of meeting with Hohenheim's wife, however, if they _did_ happen to run into each other, he could merely claim that he had come to speak to Hohenheim himself, he might even be able to learn where the man had vanished to.

He ensured he was looking as casual as possible as he climbed the small hill up to the Elric's house; his hands were in his pockets and he was looking around with an expression of mild curiosity.

"Who are you?" Envy halted at the demanding voice, looking down to see a blond scowling fiercely up at him, "er… Alan," Envy attempted a smile, "Alan… Homuncu," he winced slightly at the unimaginative last name, but in all honesty, he had thought he would have a bit more time to think up an alibi.

He bent down, "what's your name, kid?" hopefully he would be able to take attention away from his poorly thought up name. The blonde stuck out his tongue, "Alan Homuncu? That's a stupid name," Envy twitched, _'I'm __**aware**__ of that you __**little brat**__,'_ he thought, but he only smiled wider, trying for a mild, day-dreamy type persona, "really? Well, it's the name I was given so there's nothing I can do about that," the boy shrugged, "whatever then, my name's Edward… Elric," he looked at the older man curiously, "how come I haven't seen you around anywhere before?" he asked.

Envy stood up, slightly pleased that he had found one of Hohenheim's children at least, even if he was an annoying little twerp. All the better if they _could_ use him as a sacrifice then.

He shrugged, "oh, I'm from… I'm from Central; I just came out here because I wanted a bit of a break from it all, figured I'd go see some countryside, I'd been meaning to talk to someone from around here anyway, so I figured 'why not?'" The little brat (names be damned, Envy was going to forever refer to him as such) glared suspiciously, "why were you coming up here then?" Envy merely sighed, "well, the person I wanted to talk to was a man named Hohenheim, I met him a while ago and he told me he lived around here, I needed to ask him about something," the twerp hesitated, "he's not… here anymore," Envy's eyes lit up with false surprise, "oh? That's a shame, I _really_ needed to talk to him, do you know where he's gone? Or when he's coming back?"

The brat shook his head, "dunno, he just left," Envy frowned slightly at the boy's desolate expression, bending down he looked at the boy, "well, maybe he's coming back soon?" He asked. He wasn't sure why he was bothering trying to cheer the kid up, it certainly wasn't helping him in his goal.

The blond crossed his arms, scowling once more, "_I _don't know, Al's being really annoying, always bugging me and asking me when dad's coming back, I _don't know_ when he's coming back," he looked up with a fierceness that surprised the homunculus, "I don't care when he comes back, I don't care if he _ever comes back_!"

Envy found himself at a loss, he cast his mind around for some other topic of conversation, something to distract the boy from the issue concerning his father, "you know, it's very nice here," he finally spoke, inwardly cringing at the blatant subject change. The little brat didn't seem to notice though, simply casting a glance around then nodding, "I suppose so," he shrugged, "it's not that great though," Envy shook his head, "no, that's where your wrong, this place is so much nicer than Central."

The blond looked at him curiously, "what's Central like?" Envy smiled, "well its… it's an impressive place, I'll say that much."

He seated himself on the grass next to the road and after a moment's hesitation, the kid sat down next to him, waiting impatiently for him to describe it.

Envy shrugged, "ah, where do I start?" the brat rolled his eyes, glaring at him peevishly, "just start anywhere!" Envy chuckled lightly, "okay then."

And it was there, sitting by the side of a road and half-way up a hill, that Envy found himself describing a city he held no real connection to, to a young, ridiculously irritating brat.

It didn't take long before said irritating brat was interrupting, but Envy found that he didn't mind all that much.

* * *

"Central sounds like a cool place," Envy raised an eyebrow, "well, I suppose, it is, you get sick of it after staying there too long," the blond shook his head stubbornly, "I wouldn't ever get sick of it," he informed him, Envy rolled his eyes but didn't say anything.

The brat seemed much more cheerful, and Envy was unwilling to darken his happy mood once more.

But he did come for a reason.

"So about your father," he began, frowning as he saw the scowl forming on the kid's face again, "maybe you can help me instead?" The little twerp looked up at Envy, curiosity battling with irritation, "help you instead?" he repeated and Envy nodded.

"You see, he promised that if I came to visit him, he would show me some alchemy, he told me he was an amazing alchemist and I really wanted to see him transmute something," it was a weak story, but fortunately, the little brat had no way of knowing that there was an abundance of alchemists, he had mentioned them in his description, but only in passing.

The boy jumped to his feet eagerly, "I can do alchemy!" he declared, grinning, "oh really?" Envy perked up, "already? That's pretty impressive," the boy nodded, clearly pleased, "could you show me something?" Envy asked, he made a pretence of realising something importance and slapped a hand to his forehead, "right, you need something to transmute, yes?" the blond nodded and Envy reached into his bag, pulling out a sheet of paper, a pen and a lump of metal he had packed purely for this purpose.

"Is this right?" he asked, he felt silently grateful the little brat didn't question why he had been carrying a lump of metal around in his bag. He handed the objects to the boy, who knelt down and began carefully drawing a transmutation circle, Envy watched, silently impressed as the boy drew with the familiarity of an expert.

Finished, he placed the lump of metal on the piece of paper, pausing to think for a moment before smiling with determination and clapping his hands together, bringing them down on either side of the sheet of paper. Envy squinted against the bright light; when it faded he saw that his lump of metal had changed into an odd, cow-shaped lump of metal. It was surprisingly good to be honest.

He clapped his hands, giving the boy a smile, faking curiosity he asked, "can your brother do this?" the blond puffed out his chest, "yeah, but not as good as me," he told Envy proudly. Envy nodded, scooping up the metal cow and placing it in his bag along with the paper and the pen, "well thanks, that was absolutely amazing, you really helped me out there kid," he got to his feet and turned to leave.

For some reason he was beginning to feel a little guilty.

"Uh… do you maybe wanna stay for dinner?" Envy turned and looked at the boy in surprise, "we're having stew, it's really good and stuff so…" Envy smiled, stepping forward to ruffle the boy's hair, "thanks kid, but I better get going, it was real nice of you to show me you alchemy, you keep at it and you could be one of those State Alchemists even," the little brat grinned and nodded.

Envy turned and started to head down the hill, a frown wrinkling his forehead.

_'For some reason… I __**really**__ hope we don't have to use him for a sacrifice.'_

* * *

**Yeah...**

**So I was thinking of starting a request thing for Homestuck.**

**What do you guys think? Have any of you read Homestuck?**

**Anyway, I hope you liked this.**

**So... as I always say, review! Request!**

**Thank.**


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